The Ebb and Flow of Love and Vengeance Revamped
by Eternal Serenity.-7
Summary: His brutality is swift, her anger for vengeance fuels her hatred. Hydra Inna is just another pawn in this gruesome game of murder but beneath it all she has her own purpose. Will the love that she finds survive her hatred and the 74th Annual Hunger Games? Revamped because of some grammar errors and other small things I needed to fix.
1. The Reaping

_**Hey everyone! Here is the revamped version of the story. I was reading through and was spotting several grammar errors and spelling mistakes which is NOT ok. I promise that I am working on the sequel! It's really hard to find time to write, I'm working two jobs this summer, bleh. Anyway, to all of my new readers, enjoy!**_

_****__**Disclaimer: **__**I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. Boo yea.  
**_

_****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

My name is Hydra Inna, 18 years old, fisherman. District Four. It was only last year in the 73rd Annual Hunger Games that I watched my beautiful older brother, Arlen, die. He was only a year older than me but he was the wisest person I'd ever known. He was tall, about 6-foot-3, white blonde hair, dark golden skin and he had the deepest ocean green eyes.

They destroyed him. It had only been he and the female tribute of District One. He was so close. I had so much hope. It was in that last second, they came out of nowhere. A terrifying mix of cats and dogs with beaks of exotic birds and rows upon rows of glinting sharks teeth. We had all been mesmerized by the bright colors. Those bright colors that the Capitol was so well known for. Within moments they had my brother pinned to a tree, their beaks tore at his flesh and pecked at what lay beneath.

His screams were loud. Deafening. I wanted nothing more than to sink into the sand beneath me and die.

Then I heard his voice, strained yet still strong, calling out one name. Hydra.

It was as if his eyes had found mine through the screen, they held me in their fading depths. In that moment I understood.

Vengeance.

The one word on my mind.

Since that day, I had retreated into myself. My mother and father could coax few words from my mouth; all I ever did was work.

There was only one person who I could ever talk to about anything.

Finnick Odair.

Immediately after the games he befriended me, his understanding of the pain in my heart was the only thing that saved me from total despair. I fished with him everyday, made baskets of the palms that lined our beautiful beaches, and lounged with him in the sun in silence, listening to nothing but the breeze through the trees and the waves crashing on the shoreline.

Today was Reaping Day.

I woke up to Finnick knocking on the door to my room.

"Hydra? The reaping is in an hour, get dressed!"

I rolled over and let the sunlight pouring in through the slanted shutters warm my face. "Ok, I'll be down in a bit."

"Hurry up please?"

"Sure..."

After a warm shower I brushed my long, mid-back length golden blonde hair until it shone like summer wheat. My olive green eyes shimmered in the sunlight and looked bright against my dark skin. I was tall for most girls my age, standing at 5-foot-10.

In only a few minutes I was dressed in an aqua green dress that showed off my muscled legs, with sleeves that hugged my arms down to my wrists. I just stared into the mirror at the girl before me.

Cold and calculating.

That's what I was these days. All I ever thought about was murdering every bastard in the Capitol who aided in my brother's death.

I walked down the stairs, a silence hung over the house like the curtains and shutters in the rest of the houses around the village. My mother looked up at me, her sky blue eyes full of tears, "Are you ready?"

I shrugged, "Ready as I'll ever be I guess."

My father sat at the table with his hands wrapped around a cup of spearmint tea: his favorite. His deep brown eyes could barely find mine. All he could do was nod.

Wonderful.

Finnick came to my rescue and grabbed my hand, "Come on Hydra, we need to get you to the square."

"All right, let's go." I looked to my parents, "I'll see you both in a bit."

Silence.

I look down sadly and Finnick squeezes my hand.

* * *

Finnick and I walked down the streets, which were coated with sand and salt from years of ocean water being trailed in from the dock workers and fishermen. The air smelled of salt water and shellfish.

"You ok?"

"Yea, just painful memories, you know?"

"I do indeed. Annie won't be at the square today. She still hasn't been able to control herself."

"I'm sorry to hear that, I wish we could do more for her."

"Everyday is a step towards getting her better, I'll break through to her somehow."

I squeeze his hand for I know it to be true. He is the only person Annie trusts in the slightest, besides me that is. We're all connected by these damned games.

After a few more minutes of walking, we arrive in the square which is all ready jampacked full of people waiting for the reaping to begin. I am escorted to my age group, where only 13 of us older girls wait.

I am silent, my arms folded across my chest as the others keep away. They know I will not speak when spoken to, none of them have forgotten the horror of watching my brother die, especially Naida Ren, the love of my brother's life. Naida is beautiful, tall in stature like me with jet black hair and eyes that are a light brown, the color of sandalwood. She silently nods to me and I return the gesture.

A ghastly woman walks on stage, she could be of the sea itself. She looks at us with eyes that are bright purple and rimmed with thick turquoise lashes. Her lips are a glowing electric blue and she wears a wig that is piled high of the same color. She wears bright purple leather pants and a sea green blouse that is covered in millions of tiny sequins. Her heels are as high as the sky and gleam like the ocean foam.

Her name is Salacia. Our district escort.

"Hello, hello my lovelies!" She calls out over a microphone. Her white skin looks so delicate against the backdrop of tanned faces.

"Happy Hunger Games and may the odds be EVER in your favor!"

She is met with a cold silence.

We watch a movie about the rebellion of District 13 and why the games were established and all this other pointless babble about history.

"Now let's have fun and mix it up a bit! Gentlemen we shall draw from you first!"

She dips her glittering green nails into the giant bowl full of the names of every young man standing here. Everyone holds their breath, trying to keep from fidgeting or showing fear.

"Wiley Ur!"

The young man cannot be old enough to be participating in these gruesome games; I clench my fists as I watch him walk quietly to the steps before ascending to meet the scary woman up top. He is tiny with skin that has barely been touched by the sun, but a smatter of red freckles lace his nose. His clear blue eyes and curly red hair make him look so innocent and I can hear the gasps and murmurs running through the crowd. His face is stone, a brave soul this little boy is.

She makes her way and dips her hand into the other bowl and swishes around for a few moments, an idiotic grin spreading across her face like butter. "Oh I just get so excited!"

The silence that greets her wipes the smile from her face and she pulls the paper from the bowl.

"And for you ladies...Hydra Inna!"

The crowd is stunned speechless, another Inna called to the bloody arena. They've all seen what Arlen's death did to my parents and the friends of my family are greatly angered, I can tell by the low grumbling. "I vol-"

I hold my hand up and Naida goes silent. This is my score to settle and she knows it. I walk towards the stage as my golden hair sweeps side to side, eyes trained on what lies before me. I climb the stairs and Salacia smiles at me, "Oh how lovely you are!"

I brush her aside and go to stand next to my fellow tribute. Wiley looks up at me with his wide eyes and barely whispers it out, "But what about your parents?"

I smile at him softly and squeeze his hand, "Nothing for you to worry about."

Salacia comes in front of us and forces our clasped hands to the air, "Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the tributes of District Four!"

The thunderous claps that rise from the crowd and the shouting of our names echo throughout the streets.


	2. Goodbyes and Preparations

_**Here is the new chapter two! I hope you enjoy, I slipped a couple more tiny things in here. :) **_

_****__**Disclaimer: **__**I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. Boo yea.  
**_

_****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

Our justice building is tall and beautiful, I think it is far more beautiful than those of the other districts. It is huge, made of pale white marble that glows in the summer sun and panels of mother of pearl and shell. I sit in the room that was made for the tributes and their families when they said their last goodbyes. It is bright and airy, book shelves overflowing with ancient texts and ivory and ocean blue furniture inlaid with more mother of pearl.

This is not the type of room you allow someone with a death warrant to utilize in order to say their last goodbyes to the people who have raised and loved them. It's far too light.

I slowly walk around the room and take in all of the old books with years of dust gathering on their worn bindings.

I find one that is labeled _Tristan Marlin: The First Victor of District Four._

The pages are thick and creamy, the words are written in a beautiful script. I read through the first chapter, balking at just how brutal the games were so long ago.

My thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the shouting of my mother outside the door, "You can't take her! You cannot take my other baby!"

"Brielle, come now, there isn't anything we can do about it." My father's voice is sad and hollow.

They walk through the door, their skin is pale and their eyes are hollow. My mother grips me and rocks me back and forth, her body racked with sobs as my father can do nothing but sit there and stare at the wall.

Naida is next, her eyes swimming with tears as she sits next to me and takes both of my hands in hers. "You have to win Hydra...the most you can do to show them that they can't break us is win."

"I know, I'll do my best to, I promise you that."

She hands me a token of our district, a pendant in the shape of a crescent moon made of soft conch shell and lined with more mother of pearl. The stuff is in abundance here.

After a few more minutes, the peacekeepers lead me away and I am escorted to the train that will take me to the Capitol. I've never seen anything like it before with it's long, sleek and silver body.

Wiley is already there, he stares out of the window as we leave the train station and set out for the rest of the districts and their tributes.

* * *

I am taken to my room which almost seems too big for only one person. The bed is made to look like a seashell with ivory, blue and teal sheets, blankets and pillows. There is a large, flat screen television and a stereo system that I feel could blast the windows from the train if I turned it up even the tiniest bit.

There is a knock at my door.

I slowly open it to find Annie Cresta standing at my door.

"Annie?"

Her eyes flit to mine and she gives that small, beautiful smile that Finnick loves so much.

"Hydra! I'm so, so sor-"

Her eyes flicker to the room behind me.

"Oh, how beautiful!"

She twirls in and around before finally flopping on the bed.

"Just like home."

"Are you supposed to be here?"

"I'm here with Finnick to be a mentor for..."

Her voice trails off and she says no more.

Finnick appears at the door way and smiles at the scene before him.

"Hungry?"

"Starving. What's for dinner?"

He rubs his palms together and makes it look like he's licking his chops, "Come and see my darlings! Everything your hearts desire."

Annie jumps up and wraps her arms around his waist before they leave. He turns and nods, holding out his hand, "C'mon girl."

I take it and follow them to the dining car.

There are foods here I never knew to be in existence.

Cakes in various colors with decorations like sea horses, roses, stars and even galaxies painted in the frosting, line the first table. There are meats that make my mouth water and soups that warm my insides just by smelling them. There are breads from each district, delicious and wondrous.

Before long I have a plate piled high with food that I can't help but stuff in my mouth despite the horrified looks from Salacia.

"And here I thought we had such a pretty, young woman."

I stare at her with cold eyes, anyone from the Capitol is an enemy. I do not wish to get to know her. She sees this in my eyes and refrains from speaking to me, taking her worthless conversation elsewhere.

For about a week we ride through the other districts and watch their reapings with heavy hearts.

Their tributes are added to our train ride. I have made a point up until now to not seek these tributes out or see them.

When we ride through District 11, my heart breaks as I watch a small girl, the same age as Wiley, be chosen as female tribute. I silently plead for someone to volunteer and take her place, but of course, it doesn't happen. Their male tribute takes her hand and pulls her close to him as they wave off, just like an older brother.

District 12 is where my interest peaks. A young girl is called to the stage, her long, ice blonde braids trail behind her as she walks up but then a desperate cry rises from the crowd, "I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!"

The second girl walks to the stage as eyes watch her full of tears. She is taller, probably about 5-foot-7 with dark brown hair and grey eyes. The little girl, I'm guessing to be her sister, screams and struggles against the peacekeepers. This fuels my hatred for the Capitol even more. How can they do this to families?

The boy is about my height and stocky, he has golden blonde hair and blue eyes that are full of melancholy. His gaze catches his fellow tribute's and something passes between them that I cannot name. I turn the TV off and bury myself under my covers, falling into a nightmare filled sleep that has plagued me for a year now.

* * *

I see his eyes, burning.

His insides are ripped apart.

His flesh is torn from the bone.

The District One tribute laughs like a maniac, watching from her perch above.

He reaches out to me but I can do nothing as I am trapped behind that oversized screen.

"Hydra! Hydra my baby sister, please help..."

I pound the screen with my fists and scream, "Let me through! Arlen! Please no!"

All I hear is laughter, the laughter of thousands of people as they watch my struggle to get to the mangled body of my brother. My whole heart.

I awake to Annie, curled up next to me in a ball, her fingers running through my hair haphazardly. "Shhhh..."

Her voice is shaky but she continues.

"Only a bad dream, only a bad dream."

My breaths are short and raspy, my eyes are clouded and wipe at them furiously.

She looks into my eyes, and for a moment, it's as if she sees through the daze of her madness and they behold me with a deep understanding that is as fathomless as the sea.

I squeeze my eyes shut and hold onto her as the train continues to the Capitol.

* * *

The next morning I awake to Salacia's voice barely audible through the door, "Time to get up sleepy head, we have a busy day ahead!"

"All right, I'm coming."

I brush my long hair out and slip into a pair of black tights and an oversized teal sweater with black boots.

I take Wiley's hand as we step off the train and follow the peacekeepers to a large building. I wonder what it holds in store for us. Finnick and Annie follow close behind, his hand gently presses into the small of my back pushing me ever forward.

When we are inside the darkened rooms I am taken from the group and put in my own room that is cold and sterile. Everything is chrome and I am instructed to remove my clothing and put on this paper robe. "Wait here." The peacekeeper demands.

I simply nod before I am greeted by a man with bright green hair and pale purple skin that contrasts in a strange way. His clothing is bright and colorful as well with glitter and crystals sewn into the fabric. He looks me up and down, examining every inch of me. "Not bad, not bad at all."

After an hour, my legs, arms and face burn and I am seething. The man smiles at what is before him, "Even better," he clucks.

"Was all of that really necessary?" I growl.

"Of course, must have you looking like an image of perfection Miss Hydra."

I humph and cross my arms over my chest.

He leaves and not before long a man walks in and begins to circle me, writing something as he goes.

He stops just in front of my face.

He is a beautiful man. His black hair is cut short and his electric blue eyes compliment golden skin inlaid with flecks of real gold. He wears an ocean blue suit with waves that are patterned across the front and he stands about five inches taller than me. "I am Moana, your stylist for the games."

He reminds me of people from a place that was called Hawaii before the United States fell. Polynesian I think. That was all such a long time ago.

"Stylist?"

He is quiet for a moment, "Yes, my job is to help you get sponsors by making you look flawless and beautiful...just as I did for your brother."

I can't help but swallow the lump forming in my throat.

He pats my back softly, "It's ok, your brother was wonderful to work with. I could not believe my eyes when he was killed...I am truly sorry for your loss Hydra."

"Why are you sorry?"

"He and I grew quite close. He was a dear friend, I can promise you that."

He says my name like an old friend and I can't help but find a small soft spot for this Capitol citizen.

"Thank you," I can barely get it out.

He nods and we make our way to another bright and airy room. He claps his hands and a group of three people push and shove their way into the room.

Their names are Athena, Sweetpea and Apollo.

Athena is much taller than me, her long purple hair falls to her waist and jungle green eyes look like those of a cat. Her skin is flecked with gold like Moana's and her full purple lips form a smile as she looks me over.

Sweetpea has pale pink hair and magenta skin that shines with lilac glitter when she turns every which way. She is short and plump and her lively, amethyst eyes are framed by pale green lashes.

Apollo is of average height and looks like the sun itself with his metallic golden hair and golden hazel eyes. Bright and intricate sun patterns and swirls are painted on his skin and his lips are a pale white lined with gold.

"Oh she looks like her brother."

"No, she doesn't, her eyes are lighter and greener."

"I meant the face, such beautiful bone structure."

They stroke my skin and brush their hands through my hair.

Moana lets them finish their assessment before stating, "Make her my sea goddess."

They nod fiercely and set off to work.


	3. Memories and Creations

**_Chapter three revamped! Thank you, thank you everyone for all of the story and author alerts! I'm so glad you all are enjoying it! If you have any questions, concerns, or even suggestions, drop me a review or PM! Reviews always make my day :) Here is chapter three! I will be weaving the stories of others in here so I'm so sorry but I must make you wait one more chapter for the parade. Enjoy reading and I look forward to hearing from you all!_**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or its original characters. Suzanne Collins does, she also owns its plot line and a couple of the lines in this chapter. But my characters and plot lines are obviously...well, mine._**

**_Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn_**

* * *

Finnick lay across the bed with Annie curled up in a tiny ball next to him, her head resting perfectly in the crook of his arm. "Annie?"

"Yes?"

"Are you sure you want to be here?"

She played with a piece of her dark brown hair, braiding and unbraiding it just as he had knotted and unknotted his rope. She glanced up at him and nodded, "Yes, yes, I must help."

"I know but-"

"No buts Finnick..."

He stroked her cheek and closed his eyes, he could still see her on the big screen. She was going mad as her district partner was beheaded, eyes wide with fear, mouth open and emitting a sound that was more animal like than human.

"Do you remember when you won?"

She nodded furiously, "Swim, swim, swim for your life. The other one drowned, swim, swim."

He smiled, "My brave girl won."

She nodded, "I won, I won. I came back to you. Were you happy when I came back to you?"

Finnick nodded, "More than happy."

Her eyes cleared for a moment as if she could see, once again, clearly through the madness. Finnick smiled at the small bit of improvement, "And do you remember what happened to Urial?"

Wrong question. This was the part of the conversation where she went crazy again and became a different person. She had never been able to get past his gruesome death. After three weeks in the arena, his beheading had been the event that broke her fragile mental state.

She began to roll from side to side, hands covering her ears as if she was trying to drown out the screams of Urial before he had died. Her laughs were terrifying and high pitched, filling the room with a sense of dread and madness.

Finnick pulled her close and kissed her softly, quieting her laughs and cries. "It's ok, we'll try again soon."

They had both been through nightmares that were unspeakable. He squeezed his eyes shut and pushed out the painful memories of his years in the Capitol as a sex slave.

He had been bought and sold to the highest bidder, all to keep his precious Annie alive.

But, to this day, he knew he would do it all over to be with her.

The young victor wasn't the playboy that everyone thought him to be, in fact, he was the complete opposite. He was just a man in love still fighting for what he didn't want to lose.

* * *

Moana sat in his design room and laid out the pieces he would need for the costumes of his District 4 tributes. He had high hopes for Hydra and Wiley, but he knew that District 12 would be the favorite from the start due to Katniss Everdeen's emotional volunteering in the place of her sister. He thought back to Hydra Inna, how you could see her brother in her face. Her eyes were filled with an angry hollowness that saddened him, her personality was cold and quiet; she would definitely be hard to work with. How could he blame her?

Moana watched with the rest of the Capitol as Arlen Inna was torn to shreds by the herd of colorful mutts. The crowd had seemed shocked at this last cruelty. He had District 1 in his sights, he was going to destroy her and win the games; he was going to go back home to his family. The stylist had formed a deep bond with Arlen when he worked with him and had never forgotten the boy from District Four.

He spread the white and ocean blue fabrics across the table and began to sew, losing himself in his work and thinking back to his time with one of his favorite tributes.

* * *

**One Year Ago**

Athena, Sweetpea and Apollo gathered around the 18-year-old male tribute from District Four, their fingers caressing him, eyes gathering details about every inch of his body. Athena ran her fingers through his white blonde hair and Sweetpea stood only inches from his face, staring at the flecks of teal in his ocean green eyes.

Moana stepped in the room and waved them back, smiling at the young man. "I am Moana, your stylist, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Arlen briefly nodded, forcing a smile, "Arlen Inna."

"Well, Mr. Inna, I will be dressing you for the duration of your stay here in the Capitol. We need to get you as many sponsors as possible for the games. You never know what you'll need and the sponsors can be very giving at times of great peril."

"Great, that's wonderful," Arlen mumbled.

Moana frowned, "What's the matter? You'll have a wonderful time in the Capitol, there are so many different types of food and the technology is far better than that in District Four, or so I've heard."

Arlen glared, "Yes, but I'm not just here for the scenery am I? I'm also here to kill other kids my age in case you have forgotten. I'll be probably be dead and on my way home in a coffin at the end of this month."

The stylist stepped back due to his outburst, "Yes...yes I know. I'm very sorry. I'm sure you have a family back home who is not very happy."

Arlen noticed the genuine sadness that had crossed the tall man's face, "I shouldn't have shouted. I apologize. But yes, I have my parents and my little sister Hydra back home."

"Little sister? Tell me more about her." Moana began to sketch out the costume as he listened to the boy's story.

"Hydra is a year younger than me, she has blonde hair like me, only more golden, her eyes are olive green, with gold flecks like my dad. She's really impatient too, it's impossible to teach her anything but I've been working on teaching her fishing the past couple of months..."

He became quiet as his eyes welled with tears. He was a man, he wasn't supposed to cry.

"Pull it together," he growled to himself.

Moana smiled a sympathetic smile and he hated it. He didn't want anyone's sympathy. He longed to hold Naida again, it had only been a week since he left but it was almost unbearable.

He had a feeling though that he was going to make it home.

He had promised Naida and Hydra, and he would uphold his promise.

The stylist cleared his throat and Arlen looked up, "Not everyone here likes these games, you know. If we say anything relatively bad about them, we could be killed or someone in our family disappears. Its happened before."

This stunned the tribute, "Really?"

"Yes, not everyone here is stupid and clueless as they look. Granted the majority of them are, but not all of us."

"I see."

"Yes, now let me go put these costumes together and I will see you at a later hour."

* * *

"All right, finished."

"Am I a fish like the ones last year?"

"Well, in a way, but I made you into quite an interesting fish if I do say so myself."

Arlen turned and his eyes went as wide as saucers. The being that stared at him in the mirror was ridiculous looking, his tan cheeks turned bright with embarrassment, "What exactly am I?"

"I believe it is called a lion fish. Probably one of my favorite designs from those I've made; it was quiet complicating to figure out and put together but it came together well."

The young man cringed, "I mean...sure."

His costume was ivory, burnt orange and brown with large fins branching off of him both thin and thick. The stripes were in abundance across the whole outfit and he knew for sure that'd he'd be a sight to behold. "Well, I'll do my best to put your handy work to use."

Moana smiled, "Perfect. Now go on, your partner is waiting, the Opening Ceremonies are about to start. Smile big, earn their love and respect. You'll be a hit."

Arlen smiled at the man, "Thanks for trying to help us."

"You are more than welcome. I have faith in you Arlen Inna. You will go far."

"I sure hope so."

They parted ways and Arlen was taken by peacekeepers to where the chariots awaited the tributes, gleaming horses snorted and pawed on the ground, anxious to get a move on.

District Four's female tribute, Azure Minnow, threw a hand over her mouth, trying her best to hold back laughter. "You look ridiculous Arlen!"

"Thanks kid, you don't look so great yourself."

15-year-old Azure stuck her tongue out and twirled, "I pull the tiger fish off quite well, huh?"

Her teeth had been capped to look like razors, her golden, white and brown outfit shimmered and thick black stripes covered her torso. He remembered something that Moana had told him just before they parted ways, "I chose the lion fish because they are venomous, just as you will be when you are in the arena. It will give you a dangerous air."

He laughed at the thought of a fish scaring people and hopped up into the chariot, offering his hand to Azure. "Come on, let's get this over with."

She grinned and took his hand, jumping up next to him and gripping the bars, "This is so exciting!"

Arlen shook his head, "For now."

Moana watched as his creations entered the ring, he caught Arlen's gaze and cheered wildly, grinning from ear to ear as the crowd screamed for his tributes.

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Katniss gasped as Cinna told her to open her eyes, staring at the woman that stood before her. It was someone completely different. "Oh Cinna, I look wonderful, thank you!"

She was dressed in a simple black unitard that covered her from ankle to neck. She wore shiny leather boots that laced up to her knees but it was none of these components of the outfit that truly stunned her. The flowing black cape was covered with streams of orange, yellow and red that looked like lava flowing down her back. The headpiece was beautiful and sat on her head like a crown of glowing coal.

"You will be lit on fire-"

Her eyes widened in fear, "What?"

"You won't really be on fire, it will be a synthetic flame that is controlled by me and Portia. I kept your hair the same as you usually wear it as well. I want the audience to recognize you when you are in the arena...Katniss, the girl who was on fire." His voice was dreamy as he looked off into the distance.

He snapped back to reality and took her hand smiling, "Always be on the lookout for potential allies. District Four and Eleven are looking promising this year."

Katniss simply nodded and they left to make their way to Peeta and the other stylist team.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I open my eyes and a small smile twitches at the corner of my lips. I really do look like a goddess of the sea. My golden blonde hair has been boosted and given more body as it falls down my back like a cascading waterfall. My eyes are colored with teal, ocean blue and white shadow, the bottom is lined with a deep lilac purple. My tan cheeks are covered with ocean blue and white glitter and an intricate pattern of waves is painted up and around my arms.

Moana arrives with my costume, his face aglow when he sees how I have transformed, "Absolutely ethereal," he coos.

In a matter of minutes, I am dressed in a strapless white gown that flows into a pale blue which transforms to a deep ocean blue towards the bottom. He clasps two silver bands around my biceps with crescent moons engraved in the cool metal, white and blue fabric flows from the bottom of the bands down to my fingertips.

He finishes the costume with a simple tiara that is made with pearls and opals, its beauty is absolutely breath taking. I wear silver gladiator sandals and am ready for our parade.

"I promised your brother that I would stray from the fish costumes and if I do say so myself, I have succeeded."

I can only nod, "You have indeed Moana. It looks wonderful."

"Thank you dearest, let's go find Wiley and get you to that parade."

We find Wiley and his stylist Kailauni and their prep team, Kailauni is as beautiful as Moana with her long black hair and piercing blue eyes. She smiles warmly, "We have done well Moana."

"Yes, we have!"

Wiley is dressed in a white toga that fades into the same shades of blue as my dress; the shoulders are clasped with starfish and he wears a silver and blue crown that is fit for a god. "You look pretty good Wiley."

He moans and keeps looking up at the headdress, "I feel like a girl with this stupid thing."

I give a small laugh and pinch his cheek, "Oh, it's not all that bad."

He pushes my hand away but a small smile plays at his mouth.

We find our chariot and I can't help but go to pet the horses. They are large and white; they look like the foam that crests off the ocean waves.

One of the horses gently lips my hand with his velvety muzzle and I lean my forhead against his own massive one, breathing in his clean scent.

The chariot is made of ivory and mother of pearl, a perfect compliment to our costumes.

I can hear the chatter of the other districts' tributes around me and I do my best to drown it all out. The roar of the crowd is deafening as the District One tributes make their way into the ring. District One. The district who won over my brother. Stupid District One and their luxury items. They may as well be of the capitol themselves.

It is our turn, District Four, my name flashes up on the screen along with Wiley's and as soon as they announce Hydra Inna, the crowd's cheers falter and I know that they remember.


	4. The Parade and Their New Home

**_Chapter four revamped! So I'm getting back into my writing groove and the chapters are getting longer! Yes, always excites me. I keep cranking out chapters, I literally cannot help myself, I just love to write! Here is the fourth chapter, it's pretty emotional so it was incredibly fun to write. Thank you again for even more story and author alerts! You guys are great! REVIEW! I love them and they help me to decide what to fix, change, etc._**

**_Disclaimer: Again I don't own the Hunger Games, characters, or their plot line, Suzanne Collins does. I do own my own plot line and characters though._**

**_Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn_**

* * *

A voice booms over the speakers, "Just last year, Miss Inna's brother was almost the victorious tribute!"

A brief video of him plays and I look up, his smiling face glows as he rides out in a ridiculous costume, waving to the crowd and eliciting loud cheers. A small smile crosses my face and the crowd begins to roar as they chant, "INNA! INNA!"

My blood runs as cold as ice.

I want so badly to reach into the screen and pull him out, back to me, alive again.

I long for those long days on the beaches with my brother and our friends, fishing until the sun went down, swimming in the cool ocean.

These people cheer for my brother's death, they cheer for me as I ride towards my own death. It's all I can do to keep from going crazy and screaming at them and telling them how stupid and clueless they all are. The cheers drive me towards insanity but my insides beg for the video to continue playing so I can see that face that I loved so much, the anchor in my life, the older brother who taught me all I know.

I want to destroy them all.

Someone please help me, I can't do this.

* * *

Finnick watched as Hydra and Wiley rode out in their chariot, the crowds cheers faltering as they heard Hydra's last name. They remembered Arlen. A video of him flashed across the screen and he closed his eyes for a moment, he could only imagine what Hydra was thinking at this moment. He squinted to see that she was gripping the handle bar so hard that her knuckles were as white as the dead. Her gaze was straightforward but it was cold and he could see the rage in those olive green eyes as the people cheered.

She was going to lose it.

Annie gripped Finnick's arm so tightly it almost hurt, "She's angry, she's angry, what shall we do?"

Finnick could only shake his head and pray that she would look over at him.

He began to wave frantically and Annie did the same, shouting Hydra's name.

She looked over at them.

Finnick gave her a thumbs up and pointed at the smile on his face, "Please smile," he mouthed to her.

She shook her head, "I can't," she mouthed.

He could see the tears glistening in her eyes.

Annie sat next to Finnick, covering her ears again and laughing like a maniac causing a few of the capitol people to stare at her and scoot a few feet away.

At that moment he had to do his best to keep from wringing their necks.

He sat back down and cradled her to his chest, ignoring the stares of those surrounding them, "Come on Hydra, you can do it."

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I sniff furiously as the tears threaten to overflow, I cannot risk losing my hardened appearance. They still cheer for me and I wish that they would stop and pay attention to the other tributes.

A hand closes over one of mine and I look down to Wiley who stares up at me with those quiet eyes, "It's ok, just concentrate on the other costumes...some of them are pretty silly."

To this moment this boy has done nothing but surprise me with his level of maturity and bravery. I'm 18-years-old, he's only 12. I should be ashamed of myself. I sniff one last time and give him my best smile before I look up at the screen to examine the other districts' costumes.

First there is District One: Luxury. They look as stupid as a great feathered bird that wore the wrong color today. The girl's name is Glimmer. I snort, how appropriate. She is pretty and blonde, about 5-foot-7 with bright green eyes. She wears a great feathered, magenta headdress, a glittery magenta gown and this stupid looking fur stole. The boy's name is Marvel, he's handsome and all ready has girls swooning over him in the crowd. He's tall, 6-foot-3 with sandy brown hair and eyes. His smile is wicked and I can see him killing without hesitation. He's wearing a magenta suit with a large fur vest just as his district partner. I can hardly take them seriously.

District Two: Masonry. This pair of tributes looks lethal. The girl's name is Clove and she's tiny but I would not want to be caught in her wake in the arena. She looks like an ancient gladiator in her golden armor and headpiece with giant wings that are in flight on the sides. She looks to be about 5-foot-4 with dark brown hair and frightening black eyes. But, it is the male tribute I can't make myself to look away from. He is tall and muscular with ice blonde hair and blue eyes that are like ocean itself. His name is Cato. For a moment it is as if the crowd's cries are far away and I stare at those eyes without looking away. They look angry. He's ready to fight and win.

I hope he isn't disappointed easily because I won't let him.

The rest of the districts ride on and I find myself laughing on the inside over their costumes; Wiley giggles at some of the strange looking ensembles. If there was a lightning storm, District 3, Electronics, would be in trouble. The amount of metal in their costumes looks immeasurable. District Five, Energy, looks as if their heads are being swallowed by giant silver plates made of sequins. The red head has a pinched face, she looks sly and I know I will probably have to look out for her as well. The sly ones always make it close to the end.

District Six, Transportation, look as if they have a great green horn sprouting from their head and wrapping around their faces. District Seven, Lumber, has their costumes made entirely of paper. I give their stylists props though; the costumes are intricate and beautiful. District Eight, Textiles, both look quite unhappy in their bright pink and blue costumes. I think they both know that they look like clowns.

District Nine, Grain, puzzles me. I cannot understand how on earth their costumes have anything to do with their district. I can't help but feel incredibly sorry for District 10, Livestock, are dressed in gaudy cowboy and cowgirl outfits. The hat on the girl looks as if it may swallow her any minute.

District 11, Agriculture, look like simple farmers in their overalls and work shirts. The little girl looks adorable and smile as her name crosses the screen, Rue. Rue looks so innocent in the bright blue shirt with puffy sleeves and the simple silver crown of wheat. The male tribute is tall and looks annoyed to even be here in front of these strange and brainless people. His name is Thresh. I feel as if I would want Thresh as an ally in the arena over any of them.

Then they appear. District 12, Mining. Katniss Everdeen looks stunning in her black costume that glows like coal. Her hair is in intricate braids and Peeta looks handsome with his blonde hair slicked back and his eyes aglow. The crowd is uncontrollable as they lock hands and raise them high showing unity and strength. They ride out and their costumes are suddenly lit on fire. I am mesmerized by the beauty of their show, just as everyone else in the arena is. I all ready know who the crowd favors, they will gain the most sponsors without a doubt and I think that they deserve it. I want to get to know Katniss, the girl on fire, but I push the thought from my mind; I'll have to kill her soon anyway.

We pull into City Circle and citizens pour out of the windows of the building above shouting our names and cheering. We pull up to the President's mansion and watch as he walks out onto the highest balcony; he is a frail looking man with thin white hair and a constant cough that plagues him. The sky is growing darker but Wiley and I keep staring at Katniss and Peeta as their costumes continue to glimmer in the night. The national anthem begins to play and I watch as the screen lights up with all of our images just one more time. Both Katniss and Peeta are dominating the screen though, they are the citizen's love.

Our chariots disappear into the bottom of the Training Center and our prep teams rush to us as quickly as they can almost knocking one another over. Their thick capitol accents are obnoxious but I hold fast and breathe deeply.

Moana helps me down and smiles brightly, "You did well dearest...you both did."

Wiley gives a big grin and I can't help but smile and hug him close.

Finnick is right behind him with Kailauni and Annie, a smug smile lighting his visage, "You were perfect. The crowd loves you, they can't help but remember the death of your brother and the story of his sister here to carry on his legacy and his huge to them!"

I grit my teeth and glare, "Nothing better than a sibling sob story, huh?"

Finnick realizes what he said and quickly shakes his head, "I didn't mean it like that Hydra..."

"It's fine. Besides, District 12 is the favorite. Katniss and Peeta are great together."

"That maybe true but I don't think you are too far behind. They're still talking about you and your brother up there."

I feel bad for poor Wiley, they couldn't care less about him, but he only smiles and grips my hand.

I begin to say something when I feel eyes watching me, they drill into my back, and my arms become cold as goosebumps rise to the surface.

It's District Two.

I slowly turn to catch his curious gaze but as soon as he sees me watching, his eyes turn cold and he glares.

I can't look away and neither can he.

We know how badly we both want to win; I'm going to do whatever it takes to win and avenge Arlen.

I don't care who I have to go through.

"Hydra? Hydra?"

I shake my head and turn to Wiley who pulls on my hand, "Come on, it's time to go see where we're staying."

I nod and follow him, passing District Two with one last cold stare.

* * *

The Training Center is huge and I fear that I will lose myself here, but as soon as I get inside, my fears diminish. Every district has their own floor which is easy as Two goes to floor two, Three to floor three, etcetera.

Salacia stands next to me and stares down at a clipboard she is holding, scrawling thousands of notes. "You both did quite well tonight, but, Hydra dear I must beg you to please act a little happier or friendlier or something. There is no way I can get you sponsors with that angry face you always wear."

I sigh and look out of the elevator's crystal walls, "I'll try," I mumble.

We land on four and exit the elevator, walking down the corridor. Finnick and Annie leave us to settle into their room and Wylie runs down to his own, excited to see what awaits him.

Salacia stops in front of my door, "Get changed, dinner will be in an hour."

I nod silently and watch as she walks away, shaking her head as if she has all ready deemed me hopeless.

The room is monstrous.

I look to see that its windows have been programmed to look like the sea itself, a nice touch that has already begun to work on my nerves. The bed is large and plush with the same colored sheets, blankets and pillows that were on my room in the train. The little machines all over the room mystify me, and I fumble around with some of them trying to see how they work. I quickly become impatient and give up. I'm guessing District Three is having an easier time with their rooms than I am.

The shower itself is like a puzzle I don't want to solve. I step in and find myself cringing and groaning as the water becomes too hot, too cold, or the soap smells terrible. Soon though the shower figures out how I like it and the water is a perfect luke warm; just like the ocean water back home. I step out and take a deep breath as the scents of coconut and sandalwood dance around me.

A strange machine untangles my hair and blows it out till it shines like wheat again and falls around my shoulders almost perfectly. I slip into a pair of loose black sweats and a fitted ocean blue hoodie that reveals a sliver of my flat stomach. I open the door to the dining room to find everyone all ready gathered around the table, staring up at me and silencing. "I know I know, sorry I'm late."

Salacia clucks her tongue and shakes her head, "I thought you were going to be so easy to work with in the beginning but after I heard what happened to your brother I found out that I was terribly mistaken."

They stare at her with wide mouths and eyes that almost shout, "What are you thinking?"

She instantly covers her mouth with a gloved hand and looks up at me with those silly purple eyes, "I'm so sorry, that was not my place."

I just fix her with an icy glare and find my spot next to Wiley. "Hey kid, what're you eating?"

He stuffs his mouth with another bite of the soup, "Lamb stew with wild rice," he chews some more, "So good!"

I smile and pinch his cheek, "So adorable."

The tension in the room seems to evaporate as Finnick begins to tell funny stories from back home. Annie is latched onto his arm as always, taking small bites from a small sandwich that smells delightful.

I try to smile and laugh at his stories but I can't help but keep thinking about all of those other tributes that I will have to try and kill in a few weeks. Their faces flash across my mind and the air in the room is suddenly stifling.

Wiley gently pats my hand, "Are you ok?"

"Oh yea, I'm fine. Just tired, long day."

"Yea me too, is your room programmed with an ocean in the windows?"

"It is..."

"Just like home, I think it'll help us sleep better."

I nod and continue to listen to Finnick.

"And so Hydra is trying to spear this fish and she won't be patient about it and keeps stabbing the water. I tell her Hydra, you're going to scare away everyone's dinner. She doesn't listen though and continues to do it. Well, one of the fishes decides that they have had enough of her and it leaps out of the water and slaps her right in the face! She slipped and fell in the water, completely soaking herself from head to toe."

They all laugh at my worst flaw, my horrendous lack of patience.

Salacia comments, "That could get you in serious trouble here though Hydra...patience is key to these games."

I set my fork down on my plate and look around at all of them, "I'm not hungry anymore, I'll see you all tomorrow."

Finnick protests but I leave anyway, determined to get as far away from any talk of the games as possible.

* * *

A few hours later I find myself awake when no one else is, as always. I take the elevator to the rooftop and find myself a haven away from the floors below. The city lies before like a blanket full of glittering gems, the lights are bright and colorful. There is a garden planted over on the other side with beautiful and exotic flowers from every district, their sweet scent is carried by the cool breeze.

I walk past the flowers and run my hands across the velvet petals, enjoying the feel beneath my fingers. I take out the crescent moon pendant from beneath the hoodie and rub my thumb over the smooth surface, smiling at its pale face and thinking of Arlen and the day he gave it to Naida.

I wonder how she is doing right now.

I wonder how everyone at home is doing, if my parents miss me, if they even think about me.

A throat is cleared behind me and I whip around catch myself staring into the eyes of District Two.

"What do you think you're doing?" I hiss.

He becomes defensive and gets in my face, "Came up here for some fresh air, issue?"

I just walk away and find myself a vacant spot on the rooftop. Not soon after, footsteps follow me.

"You won't win this. I hope you know I've been training my whole life and I saw that look in your eyes tonight, I know that look and it won't happen."

I whip around and glare at him, shoving him hard with my palms, "Back off idiot! I will win and do whatever it takes to do so. I made a promise that I would."

He has me up against a wall before I can blink and his eyes hold mine, "Watch yourself sea girl, just because you looked like a goddess doesn't mean you have the powers of one. Just because you want this does not mean it's yours."

There is something in his eyes that is unreadable and I look away. He grabs my face and turns me back to face him, his lips barely inches from mine. I can feel his warm breath on my mouth and for some stupid reason I can't help but notice how beautiful his lips are. His arms become lax and he lets me go, leaving me with one last message, "He wouldn't have won anyway, he wasn't even close to being the best."

The tears fall like a summer rain as rage burns through my veins.

He will be the first to die.

I run back to my room and slam the door behind me, sobbing as quietly as possible, trying not to disturb anyone else on the floor.

There is a knock at my door.

"Hydra?" Finnick calls through the door.

I clench my fists and shake my head, "Go away Finnick, just go away please."

I hear a sigh on the other side of the door as he reluctantly pads away, I can hear him talking to himself or someone who may be with him.

I crawl into bed and cry until I fall asleep. For the millionth night in a row, my nightmares plague me.


	5. Training and Trouble

**_Woo! Longest chapter yet! This chapter was a lot of fun to write as well and I hope you all enjoy it! REVIEW my wonderful readers! The feedback is great and really helps me fix things and write an even better chapter. Love you all!_**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or any of the characters or plot line. Some of the lines in this chapter belong to Suzanne Collins as well, you'll know 'em when you see 'em. But I do own my own characters and plot line. **_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

A knock sounds at my door and I bolt up, awakened from another one of my nightmares. I pad across the floor and throw open the door to find Wiley smiling sweetly, "You want to get breakfast with me?"

"Oh sure, give me a few minutes to shower up and make myself look a tiny bit decent."

He nods and jogs back towards his own room, a bounce in every step. Oh how I wish I could be as hopeful and optimistic as he is.

I shrug out of my pajamas and look down at my biceps, deep purple bruises in the shape of fingers paint my skin like an ugly canvas. They're painful to the touch but I ignore it and continue with my morning routine.

After a shower my hair is blown dry and I am coated in a vanilla smelling lotion that makes my skin as soft as the petals of the flowers on the rooftop. I look around for a change of clothes and find one waiting for me, neatly folded on the closet shelf.

The pants are tight and black, hugging every inch of my body like a second skin. I pull a deep ocean blue tunic over my head and pull on a pair of shoes that are surely from back home with their breathable fabric that the fishermen wear out on the boats.

I open my door to find Wiley, sitting on the floor with his legs crossed, patiently waiting for me to finish. He jumps up at the site of me and smiles, "Come on!"

We are greeted by an avox, his sad eyes look into mine as he leads me to my place at the table. I cannot help but feel terrible for the young man and his inability to speak. I remember when Finnick told me about what happened to these pour souls and my gut clenched and turned at the horrendous scene he painted for me.

Within minutes, I am hastily eating, starving from the lack of food due to my sudden departure from dinner last night. Annie and Finnick arrive, Annie taking her place on my other side.

"I heard you last night." She looks off towards the door, "I heard you screaming. Do you feel ok?"

I briefly nod, "I'm ok, I promise."

She looks unconvinced but goes back to paying attention to Finnick who listens to every little bit of babble that comes from her mouth, patiently. After we finish eating, Finnick clears his throat, "So what can you both do? I have some idea of what your capabilities are Hydra but what about you Wiley?"

He stabs a strawberry on his place with his fork and a thoughtful look crosses his face, "I can throw a trident pretty well for my size, I've had to help my father fish a lot and we always used tridents so we could get more fish at once."

Finnick nods and ponders this for a moment before turning to me, "I know you pack a punch, but what about weapons wise?"

I shrug.

"None honestly, I've never touched a weapon in my life besides a spear and you know how that always turns out."

He rakes his hands through his hair and then takes a deep breath, "Well, you'll just have to train with all of the weapons in the training facility and see what you're best at using."

Salacia comes in and greets us all with a cheerful hello and rushes Wiley and I to the door. "Come now, it's time for the first day of training!"

He looks at me and I smile, "Let's go."

* * *

We take the elevator down to the training rooms which are housed below the ground level of the building.

The gymnasium is huge and I gawk at the amount of equipment that I see; my eyes come to rest on the circle of tributes that seems tense from all the way over here.

Wiley and I slowly walk to join them, and for the first time since last night, I see District Two.

Staring as always.

We all look back as Katniss and Peeta join the circle, they are both dressed alike and I notice the irritated look on Katniss' face.

Atala, the head trainer, looks around the circle and begins to explain our schedule for the day. She is tall and very beautiful with her dark skin and eyes and I can imagine her taking out every single one of us in this room.

There will be experts at every training station for us to work with and we will be able to choose which stations we visit whether it be one or all of them. There are stations for teaching us survival skills and more for teaching us the best fighting techniques.

Katniss looks at me and for a moment and I see fear in her eyes as she takes in the rest of us. I look away and try to focus on the list of stations that is being read by Atala. I think of the Career tributes from Districts One and Two and how they usually win these games. My own district has been called a Career district before, but not this year. Neither Wiley nor I have ever been trained before.

The Careers stare at the rest of the group with eyes that are already tearing the lot of us apart and figuring out how to destroy each and every tribute in the quickest possible way.

Wiley looks at me, "Which station first?"

I look around and point at the archery station. He nods and follows.

* * *

Finnick sat in the lobby of the large training building with Annie, jotting down notes from previous Hunger Games, watching and learning every technique of every winner like he had nine years ago.

A door burst open causing both him and Annie to jump out of their skins before realizing it was only the head trainer, Atala.

"I cannot work with her Odair!"

He held up his hands defensively as she stalked towards him with an angry scowl on her face.

"Who?" Finnick asked innocently.

"Hydra!"

"Well, why not?"

"She's so impatient! After only a few tries on the bow she threw it down and moved to the next station where she couldn't throw a spear to save her life so she got angry and punched one of my trainers who was only trying to help her!"

Finnick sighed. He knew this would be a problem.

Hydra didn't want to learn anything from a Capitol trainer. Her vendetta against them was going to get her killed.

"I'll talk to her."

"If you would please!"

Annie looked up at Finnick and frowned, "I'll be back in a little bit sweetheart, just keep watching for me."

She nodded and turned back to the television, pulling her knees to her chest as she mentally look notes from the videos.

* * *

Katniss admired the design that Peeta was painting on his arm; it was positively brilliant and would blend in perfectly with his surroundings if he was in a forest. The pattern revealed light and darkness, shadows and sunlight, just like the sun shining through the trees back home.

She found that she was horribly annoyed at this skill that he had never said a thing about. How could he possibly know what sunlight through trees looked like if he had never been into the forest outside of the large, barbed-wire fence?

The old apple tree in his backyard, a sorry excuse of a tree she thought to herself, could not provide this picturesque image in any way.

She rolled her eyes, "It's lovely. If only you could frost someone to death."

"Don't be so superior. You can never tell what you'll find in the arena. Say it's actually a gigantic cake-" begins Peeta.

The door of the gymnasium slammed open and everyone dropped what they were doing, including the Gamemakers who sat in the elevated stands that surround the room.

Finnick Odair, who Katniss recognized as being winner of the 65th Hunger Games at just 14-years-old, stormed into the room and marched over towards the District Four tributes.

He was tall, muscular and beautiful with his bright turquoise eyes, bronze hair and deep brown skin.

"Hydra!"

She turned around and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms, "Did she really go talk to you?"

He threw up his hands, exasperated, "Well yea! She said you punched one of her trainers for trying to help you and not a single other trainer is willing to work with you now! Can you have the tiniest bit of patience with these people?"

Peeta and Katniss cast amused glances at each other.

Hydra Inna hated the Capitol and everyone from here; they all knew it.

"Because! I don't care to learn any 'special' skills from them! I have no desire to-"

"You are so stupid! Hand to hand combat isn't going to save you in there! You have to know how to use weapons! You're going to get yourself killed!"

"Like Arlen?"

The gymnasium was suddenly as silent as the grave; it was as if you could hear the heartbeat of the person next to you.

"They were supposed to teach him how to survive but it obviously didn't help did it?"

She stomped off and makes her way to the doors, exiting in a huff and leaving Finnick standing there with a pained look on his face.

He looks around at all of them, "Sorry," he muttered before exiting and leaving the District Four boy all alone.

Rue, the tiny District 11 tribute, made her way over to him and began to work on making traps and snares.

He smiled at her and they continued working, chatting lively.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

On the second day, I do my best to hold true to my promise to Finnick that I would be more patient and at least try to learn how to use one weapon.

At the knives station, I find two knives that are beautiful in the light, they gleam bright as I turn them every which way. The two handles on either side are carved with an intricate design that gives the weapon it's own character.

The trainer hesitates as he steps towards me, "They're called sais."

I practice for a few hours with the trainer and find that I can use this weapon very well. I smile as I throw one straight into the throat of a dummy and the man nods in approval.

Atala signals to us that lunch is ready and all 24 of us gather around a long table that is full of several different entrees.

Wiley and I eat with the tributes from Districts Eight and 11; I find myself having a lively conversation with both Wiley and Rue who has taken to Wiley quite well. They follow each other around as if one would be lost without the other. Thresh is quiet and eats in silence, only answering a question here and there. I don't blame him for being silent. He is big and powerful, I believe that he is more powerful than Cato and I hope that he survives far into the games. He looks at Rue with a gentleness that makes me smile and reminds me of my own brother.

Thresh catches me watching him and gives me a brief hint of a smile, quickly wiping it from his face and leaving no trace of the gesture.

Rue talks about Katniss and how great she thinks the District 12 tribute is and we also speak of home. The District Eight tributes, Gwin and Nathaniel, are both really nice and I enjoy a long conversation with the boy.

Nathaniel gathers cotton in the fields and works in a warehouse that seperates the cotton from the seeds and turns it into expensive cloth. Gwin is a weaver and knows how to make every kind of outfit under the sun. According to Nathaniel, she works wonders with the needle.

Rue works in the orchards back home and has five younger siblings who she helps her parents feed. At sundown she whistles a song that lets the rest of the workers know that it is time to quit.

At the end of lunch I find that I have made a few friends but instantly regret it.

I distance myself from the group as we walk back to the gym, but then I hear a snickering that catches my attention.

Cato is speaking to both Clove and Glimmer while Marvel trails behind laughing, "It'll be easy this year no doubt. The one I thought would be hard to beat turned out to be a huge cry baby."

I clench my fists before turning back and slamming my fist into Cato's nose. He falls backward on impact and glares up at me with murder in his eyes. Glimmer and Clove fall to his side asking if he is ok and trying to look at the bloody mess his nose has become.

I remember Atala saying that we were not to fight the other tributes and that we would have enough time for that in the arena. If we were caught fighting, whose ever fault it was would have an unpleasant day.

I find that I couldn't care less.

The other tributes gather behind me and stare at the Career tribute on the floor with his hands gripping his nose.

The two girls surrounding him seem to hiss at me like snakes.

"That is for what you said about my brother," I growl.

He jumps up and makes a run for me before Peeta steps in and stops him, "Leave her alone."

Cato narrows his eyes at Peeta but backs off.

Peeta and Nathaniel coax me away from the potential battle field and I follow them back to the gymnasium.

After a few more hours of practice we are released to go back to our floors for the night. I find myself on the elevator next to Nathaniel and I begin to notice how handsome he is. He's about 6 feet tall with deep brown hair that is tinted a lighter brown at the ends. His amber eyes compliment his skin which is browned from hours in the sun gathering materials to make clothes and other textile products.

He makes me laugh and we converse while everyone else piles onto the elevator. Cato stares at me and Nathaniel, glaring at both of us, causing me to roll my eyes and Nathaniel to laugh out loud.

* * *

I sit at dinner listening to Salacia as she yells at me, "Do you have a brain Ms. Hydra? Hm? Well, do you! You could get kicked out or worse! Executed!"

I push my food around my plate.

She sighs and hits the back of the chair with a thud as she sits back down. Finnick tries to lighten the mood by asking Wiley and I about training.

"So how was the second day?"

"It was great! I made an amazing snare and my trident hit the dummy in the chest three times in a row!" Wiley beams.

"I know all the poisonous types of food out there too so I won't die from eating."

Wiley is doing well.

Finnick looks to me, eyes hopeful.

"I'm working with the sais. The trainer says they are the perfect weapon for me so I may just stick with those."

He gives me a small smile and praises my progress, "Well good, but, do work on some other things if you can."

I nod and we all finish eating and go to our rooms.

I sit there and stare at my bruised knuckles and think back to punching Cato square in the nose. It had felt so good and I felt as if I could have done far more damage.

But, there is something about him still that I feel in the pits of my stomach. It's as if it's on fire when he stares at me and I can't help but stare back.

I bury myself beneath the covers and fall asleep, wondering what day three will bring.

* * *

Finnick lay in bed with Annie, holding her close and gently stroking her long hair. He had sat with her earlier, going over the mental notes she had taken from the videos while he went to reprimand Hydra.

This had to be a sign of improvement. Annie had silently watched the videos, reliving horrors of the other tributes and pulling out what she thought would help their tributes best.

"Finnick?"

"Yea?"

"Will there always be Hunger Games?"

Finnick lay there and thought about it, thinking to meetings he'd had with Haymitch of District 12, "I don't think so hunny, they will end. I just don't know when..."

She was quiet for a moment, "I won," she whispered softly.

"I know Annie, I know."

Her body trembled beneath his fingers and he held her tighter, "What's wrong?"

Her voice was shaky as her voice grew louder, "Swim, swim, swim for your life! Hydra and Wiley swim for your lives!"

"Shhhh, it's ok, calm down. They're ok, they'll swim for their lives."

Finnick continued to stroke her hair and she eventually quieted down.

"Finnick?"

"Yea?"

"Why were you always gone to the Capitol after you won?"

He grew silent and his eyes grew dim, that wasn't a subject he wanted to discuss.

* * *

Annie Cresta fell asleep in Finnick Odair's arms, dreaming as she had every night of the death of a close friend.

She ran across the jungle floor, arms pumping at her sides, Urial ran next to her at an equal pace.

"How many of us are left?"

"Four, one from District 2 and another from District 5."

Annie looked around, her dark hair curling wildly around her cheeks and her vibrant green eyes shining. Urial reached out and grabbed her hand, "Come on, let's go this way!"

He had jet black hair and pale green eyes that were iridescent like the scales of a fish. His skin was tanned like everyone else from District Four and was dripping with sweat as he led her through the dense brush.

They had kept each other alive this whole time.

"When was the last time we saw them?"

"I saw District 2 about an hour ago, he was cutting through the brush with that machete."

"All right well...wait, what is that?"

She squinted her eyes and listened closely, "I have no idea..."

His eyes went wide when they began to appear from the trees, giant mutts with dull teeth that would make being devoured even worse.

"Annie run!"

Urial pushed her in front of them as they headed for the lake, "Get in the water!"

They dove into the cold water as the mutts came to a screeching halt on the shore.

They both surfaced for air and waited when something brushed against Annie's leg.

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"Something just brushed against my leg, I-"

She was cut off when Urial was dragged under, the water filling quickly with blood, "URIAL!"

She dove under to see what it was and screamed as she watched the small school of colorful fish devour the remaining ligaments in his neck before his head floated away from the rest of his body.

When they finished they came after her and she swam as fast as she could, eyes wide with terror. She crawled onto shore and screamed for him, his underwater cries still ringing in her ears.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

The nightmares tear me from a peaceful sleep and I wake, the clock reads 1:45 am. I frown and roll over, staring out of the window at the ocean waves that crash upon a moonlit shore. Usually the scene would calm me but as the day draws closer where I will be forced to kill, almost nothing feels comforting or safe anymore.

I pull on an ivory hoodie over black leggings and don't even bother with shoes as I leave the room. I press the elevator button that reads 'rooftop.' Within seconds I reach the rooftop and step out into the night air, a warm breeze runs its fingers across my cheek and I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

The city lights twinkle brightly below, their colors are of every strip of the rainbow tonight. I long for the beaches of District Four, the natural light of the tiny stars and the full moon as it lights a pathway along the ocean leading out towards the sea.

I find a bench and stretch out, lying there and staring up at the sky above, trying to trace the constellations I see with my fingertip.

I think of Arlen.

I remember the nights we'd sneak out of the house and go play on the shore in the dark and count the stars, listening to the cries of a gull in the night.

I am lost in my memories when I feel someone sneaking up on me, the bench vibrating as the steps get closer. My eyes open and in a split second I am off the bench and have my hands enclosed around the throat of the intruder.

"Woah, woah, calm down!"

Cato.

I release him and step away, "What do you want?"

"You're good with those sais, I saw you practicing today..."

"Are you really here to discuss my weaponry skills or are you here to bother me more and be an ass?"

My voice is full of venom as I assume a defensive stance, ready for an attack.

"I came to apologize."

My eyes open wide and my body goes rigid, "What? Why?"

He tears a petal from one of the flowers and rips it to shreds; I wince at the site knowing full well that he could do that to me if he wanted.

"I don't know."

We stand there awkwardly for a moment before I dismiss myself, "OK, well thanks. I need sleep, goodnight."

I turn to leave and he reaches out and grips my hand, pulling me back towards him, "I mean it."

I force my hand away, fearful of the tingling sensation his touch sends throughout my body.

"All right. Sorry about your nose."

His nose is dark purple and I can only think of it as payback for my bruised arms.

He only shrugs.

I look at him for a few more moments before turning and walking away, gripping my hand as I go.

The walk back to my room seems so long as I think of his eyes, how soft they seemed for that brief moment when he told me he meant it.

I just want to get these games over with whether it means my death or not.


	6. Wavering Feelings and Determination

_**chapter is a tiny bit shorter but I promise that the next one will be longer and better! Also thank youuuu for these story and author alerts filling my inbox; you guys are so great! REVIEW! Again, it helps me to better my writing so you all enjoy it :)**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or it's characters, Suzanne Collins does. However, I do own my own characters and plot line.**_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

Cato woke the next morning annoyed at himself and pissed at her.

Why the hell did he apologize?

Weak.

That's what his father would say.

He walked across the floor and stared at himself in the mirror; her face filled his mind.

She was so cold, angry, determined.

Just like him.

He had been training for these games since the age of six and he wanted nothing more than the honor of winning these games for himself and everyone back in District Two. Yet when he looked at her, he found that he couldn't tear his eyes from her intense gaze.

He shook his head when a knock resounded off the door, "Cato? Cato wake up!"

Groaning, the tribute opened the door, staring down at Clove, "I'm up, I'm up."

She planted her hands on her hips and looked at him with her fierce hazel eyes, "Time to get a move on, we need to see if we can get some extra practice in before we go show off in front of the Gamemakers."

The District Two escort, Pansy, shouted down the hall, "Yes, yes! Hurry yourself up Cato! This is going to be a very important day for you!"

Today was the day they would begin recruiting their sponsors. He had to do his very best to make the crowd fall in love with him, which he was already sure they were, and then they would shower Clove and him with medicine, gifts, food, everything they needed to survive until the end.

After a monstrous breakfast, Clove and Cato made their way to the dining room where everyone was waiting.

Tributes were chattering about what they were going to do to try and impress the Gamemakers; some of them looked nervous and unsure as they discussed their strategies.

Marvel and Glimmer smiled at the two as they walked up, Cato casting a devious smile at the later of the District One tributes. Glimmer returned the gesture and walked in a circle around him, "So, what do YOU plan on doing Cato?"

He shrugged, "What I do best...seduce the crowd with my amazing sword skills."

She giggled, "Oh I'm sure they'll love you."

Marvel glared at Cato for a moment, fully unappreciative of the way Glimmer acted around the District Two tribute. Clove was in with him on that.

Cato waited patiently as Marvel and Glimmer left one by one to do their routines for the Gamemakers, observing the other tributes in their little groups.

There she was, talking quietly with the boy from District Eight.

He hated it.

She would smile softly at something he'd say and Cato just couldn't help but stare.

He grit his teeth until he noticed her look up at him.

She glared back at him with steely eyes that looked no different than they had before his slip up from last night.

Good.

Cato wanted her to hate him, to stay as far away as possible and yearn to destroy him and win the games.

It would make killing her easier.

A peacekeeper walked out and summoned him to the room, leading into the gymnasium where all of the Gamemakers watched from above, several of the women pretending to swoon as he smiled up at them and bowed.

Within minutes, over 10 dummies were either decapitated, missing a limb or stabbed through a vital organ. The Gamemakers applauded loudly and dismissed him, scribbling notes on pads and gulping down goblets of wine.

He grinned; they loved him. But again, who didn't.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

Wiley's leg constantly bounces up and down while he waits for his turn to go into the gymnasium. He is nervous and has been running his routine over with me at least once every two minutes.

"Don't worry so much, you're going to be fine, I promise."

He shakes his head, "No way, I'm going to mess up, I know it."

A peacekeeper stalks in and briskly takes Wiley by the arm, "Let's go. It's your turn District Four."

Wiley disappears with one more glance back and I give him my best smile and a thumbs up.

Nathaniel and I talk some more, and after 15 minutes pass, the peacekeeper reappears, "Let's get a move on."

I leave Nathaniel to Gwin and Thresh, following at a safe distance behind the man dressed in white.

The gymnasium smells strongly of wine and various types of food, I feel as if I'm going to be nauseous because of the nerves.

Every sort of weapon lies out on the table and I immediately go for the sais. The blades feel weightless and smooth in my hands and I twirl them for a moment gathering momentum and getting used to the lighter design.

The Gamemakers talk amongst themselves until I turn and face them; they immediately quiet down.

Seneca Crane watches me closely, his hands folded on his lips and body rigid. I bow low and then begin my routine, the sais flying everywhere and dummies falling by the sheer force of my throws. A trainer walks in to help and I show the Gamemakers my hand to hand combat skills, setting them all off into a frenzy of chattering.

I hear the words coming from almost everywhere in the stands, "She moves like her brother."

"Look at the resemblance!"

"I wonder if she'll go out like Arlen did."

"Such a tragic story."

"It was so entertaining to watch though! Those were the most interesting mutts I've seen!"

My face gets hot as I listen to the conversations about my brother and his death, the coil inside of me tightening, threatening to break. I keep my cool though; Wiley and I need the sponsors if we're going to have a chance in these games.

Crane dismisses me and I give another bow, coldly thanking them for their attention. I am applauded as I leave and I just roll my eyes.

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Finnick called Wiley and Hydra to dinner, the two of them were eager to find out their scores and dinner couldn't go by fast enough.

Annie held onto Finnick as they walked down the hallway, smiling up at him with bright eyes, "You know what I think?"

"What do you think sweetheart?"

"I think Wiley and Hydra are going to be like me and Urial. Take care of each other like we did."

Finnick smiled down at her and kissed her forehead, "I bet you're right."

Wiley bounded past the couple as Hydra followed close behind, both of them sitting at the table and gawking at the feast that lay before them.

Finnick pulled the chair out for Annie as she sat down, neatly folding the napkin in her lap before laughing loudly at something that Wiley said.

"Shhh sweetheart, that's a bit loud."

She quieted down and asked Hydra, "What score do you think you got?"

I spoon lamb stew into my mouth and sit there for a moment, thinking back to my session with the Gamemakers, "I don't know really, maybe a six or seven."

"That's good...I got an 8."

"That's great Annie, you must've been really skilled."

Annie only nodded, becoming silent as she ate.

After dinner, they all went to the sitting room and turned on the television, staring as the scores were televised with the tributes picture and the score underneath.

Cato and Clove received a ten.

Marvel received a nine and Glimmer an eight.

Wiley's picture appeared on the screen and the number seven flashed beneath the photo.

He grinned and jumped up and down, clapping his hands together and quickly sitting back down when Hydra's face appeared.

The number ten flashed on screen and Finnick jumped up, gathering both of the tributes into a suffocating embrace.

"You both are perfect! Absolutely wonderful scores!"

A small smile appeared on Hydra's face as she congratulated Wiley, "Must have only been because of my brother...they couldn't stop talking about him."

Wiley shook his head, "No way, you must be really good at something!"

The exhausted group called it a night early and went to their rooms, the hardest part of training was over and they could all finally relax for a bit.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I continue my nightly ritual of going to the roof to watch the stars and breathe the deep night air. It isn't the same as back home though; I miss the clean salty breeze that carries the sounds of the ocean along with it, singing our village to sleep.

I perch on the edge of the roof, wary of the force field that is there to keep any of us from jumping off and ending our time as tribute early.

The day draws ever near that I will find myself fighting to the death in some strange arena, taking the lives of all those who try to kill Wiley and I.

Wiley. Dear, sweet Wiley.

I will protect him to the best of my ability and keep him alive.

"Hello sea goddess."

A cool voice calls me from behind.

I narrow my eyes, "What?"

"Nothing. Just here for some fresh night air."

I grow silent and blow a stray strand of hair from my eyes, "It always seem to happen when I'm up here."

"Yea, funny."

We stand there in silence looking out over the city, his arm brushing mine as he appears to get closer and closer.

I make a point to move away.

"What's your issue?"

"I don't have an issue. Why do you keep bothering me?"

"Woah, bother you? Are you serious?"

"Yea, I would love it if you could find someone else to stare at and follow and just leave me the hell alone!"

Cato has me up against the wall again, his grip is almost unbearable as he pushes against me and growls into my ear, "That's right Inna, hate me..."

I stare at him with a bewildered look, "What? Why?"

His eyes are full of pleading, "Because it'll make it easier to kill you..."

I shake my head and push him away, "Get a grip Cato."

But I can't help but feel the same dread of killing him.

He glares at me and grabs my wrist, slamming my palm over his heart, my fingers grip to feel the muscle beneath the thin cotton shirt.

"You feel that? Just like yours: cold, angry and ready to do anything to win in that arena...you're just like me," he whispers and I know it to be true.

I wrench my hand away and he stares, his eyes are ice cold.

"I'm not like you...unlike you I have high regard for everyone else's lives."

And at that, I turn away and walk back to my room, I can still feel the beat of his heart on my fingers. I leave him laughing; the malicious sound makes my blood run cold.

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Finnick awoke to Annie sitting cross legged and rigid at the window, staring out at the sunrise as it painted the sky rosy pink, deep orange and lavender. She braided and unbraided a section of hair, her deep green eyes watching the bright orb as it climbed higher in the sky.

He sat behind her and pulled her into his chest, leaning down and softly kissing her cheek.

"Good morning sweetheart."

"The mornings are never good during the games," she returned.

"I know, I know."

"Yes..."

"I love you Annie..."

She buried herself deeper into his arms and let out a sigh, "And I you Finny."

He laughed at the nickname and buried his face in her tangled hair, "Breakfast time, let's go."

He pulled her up off the ground much to her amusement and she tried to sit back down, "Again please!"

"Maybe later, we need to eat first."

"Okkk."

Hydra sat at the table, pushing her food around her place, once again.

"Hydra, you need to eat more, you're already too skinny as it is." Finnick pushed.

She shrugged, "I just haven't been hungry."

Wiley looked up at his trainer, patting his stomach and grinning, "I feel pretty fat."

Finnick laughed and ruffled the boy's hair, "Right, you look fat kid."

"Told you so!"

Annie made a funny face and patted her own stomach, "Am I fat?"

The table burst into laughter and she began to laugh herself, the sound was actually more sane than usual and Finnick kissed her forehead before sitting her down and then digging into a huge plate of fruits and cheeses.

Wiley looked up at Salacia with a mouth full of food, "Oh for god's sake Wiley would you please chew with your mouth closed?"

Hydra smiled mischievously and began to smack her own food; Salacia placed a gloved hand over her eyes and began to rub her temples, "You both are two headaches molded into one giant migraine, you know that?"

"Oh come on Salacia, you love us!"

"Well...maybe so."

"So, you and Finnick are preparing us for our interview today, correct?"

She nods, a bright smile illuminating her eyes, "You, Hydra, will be working with me and my heels."

Hydra scrunched her nose, "Heels? Why do I have to wear heels?"

"To look fabulous of course!"

Finnick looks at Wiley's scared face and laughs, "Don't worry bud, I won't make you wear high heels."

"Ok good, don't scare me like that!"

"I wouldn't dream."

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato couldn't stop thinking of her. The way her fingers splayed across his chest, dancing gently to the beat of his heart; his own heart that was just like hers.

He shook his head and began to stuff his mouth full of lamb stew and ham, noisily chewing and causing Clove to glare at him disgust.

"Join the rest of the human race and eat like one huh?"

"Shut up Clove, I'll eat how I damn well please."

She rolled her eyes and punched him in the shoulder, "Calm down! You've been on edge lately, what's up?"

He shrugged and slurped another spoonful of stew, "Just ready to be in the arena, you know?"

She nodded and smiled dreamily, "It's going to be so great, can you imagine what it's going to be like at home if one of us wins?"

One of us.

Cato nodded, "Yea, it'll be pretty crazy. I won't have to work in the Nut for a while and then I'll have a huge house on Victor's Mountain."

"Oh you're so sure you're going to win?"

He looked into her eyes and smiled, "More than sure munchkin."

She glared, "Well thanks for the consideration."

"Anytime!"

This is why they were partners. The two worked perfectly together and could handle one another's sarcasm and kiss my ass attitude.

Pansy walked in, her bright golden bronze hair falling down to her waist, her silver lipstick glowing in the light.

"All right you two, interview practice today!"

"Are you serious? Come on, look at us; we're from District Two, we always know what to say and people love us!"

Cato agreed, "We can do it on our own."

Pansy pouted and the tributes looked at each other and moaned, "Fine, we'll practice."

Her lips split into a wide smile, "Perfect!"

Cato was pulled away by their trainer, Hephaestus Forge, "Come on Cato, we all know you have a lot to work on."

"Oh of course we do, it's not like they're all swooning over me..."

"Well now they're swooning over Marvel too."

Cato narrowed his eyes, "Great. Let's get to practicing."

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

After hours of smiling, curtsying, twirling and saying the silliest lines I've ever heard, Salacia finally smiles.

"Ok, that was good, you just take on the role as heartbroken sister who wants to carry out her brother's memory and you'll have them pouring over you with sponsorships!"

The thought of using my brother to help me survive seems horribly ironic and it makes me sick to my stomach, but I do my best to put on a brave smile and nod.

Finnick helps me with my speech content, and after a while, we finally decide on everything I'm going to say.

So there you have it, the District Four tributes. Wiley will be using the shy and innocent approach and I will be using the heartbroken and forlorn approach.

Perfect.

This had better get us a good share of sponsorships.

Finnick and I lay there on the floor of the TV room and stare up at the ceiling; the walls have become a makeshift scene and we bask in the artificial sunlight as if were back home.

"Are you going to be ok talking about Arlen?"

I'll never be ok talking about my brother's death, whether it be to friends back home or the people in this god forsaken city who watched him die for their entertainment.

"Yea, gotta do what I gotta do."

"I'm sorry you're all caught up in this mess. You should have let Naida go..."

"No, I shouldn't have. It was my name that was called, not hers. Besides, he'd want me to go and show them they haven't broken any of us with their pointless games. "

"District Four is proud...Arlen would be proud. And well, you know me, I'm equally proud."

I roll over and prop my head up with my hand, "Oh really?"

He rolls over and looks at me, doing the same, "Yes realllllly."

I laugh and fall over onto my stomach, "How's Annie?"

"Increasingly growing nervous. But, she's had a lot of little pieces of this and that I think would highly help you and Wiley. We're both trying to come up with a strategy; she wants you to keep each other alive as long as possible."

"Just like she and Urial did..."

"That's right, she says you remind her of Urial. She knows you want to keep Wiley alive till the end."

I look down and close my eyes for a moment; one of us will have to die in the end.

There can only be one winner.

I planned on winning these games, taking the victory home to District Four and showing the Capitol that my brother's death could not shake my family.

Eventually I would return and complete my vengeance, even if that part of my own plan meant death or execution.

I wanted Snow and every Gamemaker in the Capitol dead.


	7. Fear and Falling

_**Chapter Seven! Definitely the longest chapter as of right now! This chapter was crucial and very important so that's why it's as long as it is. Thank for the wonderful reviews and all of the story alerts! You guys are wonderful! Keep it up! Enjoy and I will shortly be writing chapter eight. And thus begins the games...PSYCHED. Next week, my chapters may come out a bit slower, I have tests, projects and papers so it'll be busy.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or the plot line, some of the lines in this chapter are Suzanne Collin's. I do however, own my own characters and plot line. **_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

I wake up with sunlight shining on my face and the ocean waves crashing across the walls; the sounds of gulls cry out in the distance.

I sit up and stretch, stopping when I find three people gawking at the scene before them.

My prep team.

"Good morning?"

Athena stares at the fluorescent waves, her catlike eyes taking it in with so much curiosity, "Is this what District Four looks like?"

I smile softly and nod, "Yes, we have some pretty bad storms some days but for the most part, this is what it looks like."

"It's so beautiful," she whispers.

Sweetpea scrunches her little button nose, "I bet it reeks of dead fish though!"

Apollo closes his eyes and tilts his head back, soaking up the artificial light, "Who cares! This sunlight feels soooo good."

"Indeed it does."

"I'd like to visit sometime!"

I make a face as I look at his extravagant golden outfit that matches his own hair and make up perfectly, "Well, if you did, you certainly wouldn't be able to wear those clothes."

His face drops, "Oh. Maybe I'll just stay here."

Their love for beautiful clothes and bright, shining make up will always surpass their desire to see natural beauty.

I would hate to live a life like they do.

Athena seems to be the only one who would actually make the trip, "I'd give my clothes up to see it. I've never been outside the Capitol."

Sweetpea claps her hands, "Well enough of that, let's get to work!"

My team works on perfecting me for the biggest night of this week, the interview with Caesar Flickerman, an interview I dread.

My tan skin glows as if the sun lies just beneath the surface, my usually narrower olive green eyes look big and wondrous as they make them up with golden and sandalwood colored shadow and black mascara that reflects gold in the light. They color my cheeks with a dusty plum and my lips are a pouty, pale pink.

My long hair is sleek and shiny as it falls down my back, my bangs shimmer with golden dust.

I turn around and almost gasp. "And now you have been turned into a sun goddess my dear," the deep voice of Moana comes just from behind me.

"Ready for your dress?"

I nod and close my eyes while they slip the dress over my head, the fabric feels soft and airy.

"Open!"

The eyes widen as I take in the length of the mirror, staring at the creature that stands before me.

Sun goddess is an understatement.

The dress is a long, flowy yellow with one shoulder and a sunburst that extends outwards from my sternum.

"I figured since we already captured the ocean during the parade, we would work at it from the sun's perspective this time."

"It looks beautiful, your work is amazing!"

He smiles with pride, "Thank you Hydra."

I wear two inch heels that are sparkly and yellow, I can actually walk decently in this pair. Thank god; how embarrassing would it be to trip and fall flat on my face in front of all of Panem?

Moana hugs me, "You will do wonderful Hydra, I know it."

"I hope so, I feel like it will be hard to live up to the crowd's expectations. I'm always being compared to Arlen and I don't know if I can be as friendly and likable as he was..."

"The crowd all ready loves you, there is nothing to be worried about. They know you are who you are, just do as Finnick and Salacia have instructed you to do and you will sail through the interview brilliantly."

With one last hug, he sends me off to meet up with Finnick and Wiley, who is dressed in a white and golden suit, his red hair glows beneath the hall lights and his blue eyes look as clear as the summer sky.

"You clean up well kid," I pinch his cheek, a habit that Wiley despises.

He bats my hand away and straightens up, "You don't look so bad yourself oldie."

"Oldie? Heyyy, respect your elders."

He grins and sticks his tongue out at me, "Elder? Psh, no way."

Finnick takes my hand and twirls me around, "You look beautiful..."

Annie rushes at me and throws her arms around my neck, nearly knocking me to the ground, "OH! Oh you look so wonderful!"

I squeeze her back, "Thank you Annie, you look beautiful as well!"

Her usually wild hair is tamed, ringlets fall down her shoulders and her emerald eyes are glowing. She is dressed in a deep sea green dress that sweeps the floor and swishes when she turns.

Finnick pulls her close and it kisses her long and deep.

I can't help but feel envious.

* * *

Cato sat in his assigned chair and looked out at the crowd who sat in elevated stands that had been temporarily set up in the city circle. The sky was growing darker but the lights were bright and almost blinding, but that didn't stop him from giving everyone a bright smile and waving up at the stands.

Cato was dressed in a charcoal colored suit with black accents, his ocean blue eyes were bright and girls called out his name from everywhere.

Well, almost everywhere.

There were some cheering for Marvel as well, which highly annoyed him. The District One boy was smiling and waving as well, giving a few winks here and there.

How stupid.

Caesar Flickerman walked out on stage to thunderous applause; he waved to the crowd and television cameras who had adored him for more than 40 years.

Flickerman had hosted the interviews for the games for all that time and looked the exact same every year. His face was coated with white makeup and his hair and eyebrows were dyed a deep midnight blue, just as his suit was.

His lips and eyelids were coated with the same color and the suit blinked with thousands of tiny bulbs that were made to look like the stars against the dark night sky.

Cato shook his head, Caesar looked ridiculous.

When Glimmer stood up for her turn, she turned and gave a cute smile to Cato, swishing her hair over her shoulder before turning to the crowd and taking her seat at center stage.

He had to admit that she was sexy in that see-through golden gown, her blond ringlets falling to mid-back.

"Just like Hydra," he thought.

He listened to her, Marvel and then Clover before he stood and made his way to the chair in the middle.

"Cato Mika everyone!"

The crowd clapped and cheered loudly before Caesar quieted them down, turning to Cato and smiling, "So Cato, how do you feel about being here?"

"Well Caesar, I am honored to be here representing District Two, its pretty exciting actually."

"That's good to hear, tell me, what is your strategy?"

Cato stared out into the crowd before turning and making eye contact with everyone, "Killing everyone and anyone who gets in my way."

The crowd is hushed as they stare open mouthed at the ruthless killing machine that sits before them.

But everyone noticed something.

As he had made eye contact with each tribute while he answered, he skipped over the girl from District Four.

"So you're determined to win?"

"Absolutely, that's what I'm here for."

"Well I wish you the best of luck Cato, although I'm sure you don't even need it."

Flickerman thanked him and moved on.

The boy from District Four was shy and bashful, the crowd awed and sighed at him as he answered the questions. He would be easy to kill.

Then she stepped up, the crowd went wild as she gave a small and pained smile.

Cato found himself gripping the edges of his chair, concentrating heavily on her.

She was breathtaking.

The sun itself seemed to radiate from beneath her skin as the yellow fabric swirled around her tiny frame like the ocean breeze.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Miss Hydra Inna! You look beautiful tonight, sea goddess turned sun goddess."

Hydra smiled and waved to her stylist, "Yes, Moana is quite gifted isn't he?"

The crowd claps for the stylist as a camera catches his joyous face.

She sat down as Caesar asked her the first question, his voice was hushed, "Why did you choose to come here Hydra? We all saw that a friend was going to volunteer in your place...were you thinking about your parents when you went up to that stage?"

"I came here because I wanted to. Naida was the love of Arlen's life and I didn't want her dying in my place. Arlen would have never forgiven me if I'd let her go. As for my parents, I thought about them the whole time and I made a vow that I would come home. And I will."

"I see, that's very admirable and selfless Miss Inna. Do you remember what were you doing when your brother died?"

The crowd became silent.

Cato looked up and watched, he could hear Glimmer as she whispered to Marvel, "This is just all for the sponsors..."

"You're right, she's completely faking it."

Hydra bit her lip before beginning, "I was with my friends watching the games on the beach...we were all so excited and all ready celebrating his inevitable victory..."

She trailed off and took a deep breath, Caesar reached over and took her hand, giving it a light squeeze, "Are you ok?"

She nodded and continued, "He had her in his sights, he was going to kill her, win and come back home to us. But then they just came out of nowhere, I remember thinking that the colors were so beautiful and I didn't even understand what was happening until I heard him screaming..."

She stopped again and Cato could see the anguish in her eyes as she struggled to hold back tears, "They tore him apart like he was merely a scrap of raw meat. I...I heard the sounds of his flesh crunching as they ripped it from his bones...then...then he screamed my name and I, I knew that if I was ever called to the games, he would want me to go and win for him."

There were sniffles in the crowd and a couple of people even sobbed, it was the saddest thing Cato had ever heard. A single tear slipped down her cheek and Caesar squeezed her hand again, "Thank you for telling us about it Hydra, it must be so hard."

She briefly nodded, "It is, I miss him so much."

"I know you do."

He stood up and she did as well and he held up a hand, "Hydra Inna!"

The people clapped again and cheered as she walked back and took her seat.

It was hard for any of the other tributes to top that, but of course, District 12 had no problem with that.

* * *

Katniss watched Rue in her beautiful little blue gossamer dress, the crowd loved the little girl and her soft demeanor.

The crowd loved how she told Caesar that he couldn't count her out yet because she was fast and tiny which meant that no one could catch her which then went on to mean she couldn't be killed.

Caesar was beaming and said that he would never count her out in a million years.

Then there was Thresh, he was so quiet yet he was so big.

She was glad that he had declined the invitation to join the Careers, clearly his protectiveness for Rue would take precedence over anything else.

Then it was Katniss' turn.

She shook Caesar's hand and then sat down, her nerves were set on fire.

"So, Katniss, the Capitol must be quite the change from District 12. What's impressed you most since you arrived here?"

She sat there, silent as the grave, trying her best to come up with something to say, "The lamb stew..."

Flickerman began to laugh as well as members of the audience, "The one with the dried plums?"

"Oh yes, I eat it by the bucketful."

He turns and holds his own stomach, making the crowd laugh again, "It doesn't show does it?...Now Katniss, when you came out in the opening ceremonies, my heart actually stopped. What did you think of the costume?"

Cinna raised an eyebrow at her, "You mean after I got over my fear of being burned alive?"

The rest of Katniss' interview went perfectly, and by the end, the crowd was drooling over her. She looked like a flame in her silky red dress with his yellow, orange and blue tipped jewels.

Next, it was Peeta's turn, the last interview of the night.

The audience adored him from the start, of course.

He was charming as he strode through his interview, he was a natural speaker and one could easily tell.

Caesar asked him a question that everyone was dying to know, "So Peeta, do you have a girl friend back home?"

He hesitated, then shook his head, "Handsome lad like you? There must be some special girl. Come on, what's her name?"

Peeta sighed, "Well, there is this one girl. I've had a crush on her ever since I can remember. But I'm pretty sure she didn't know I was alive until the reaping."

Everyone sighs, "She have another fellow?"

"I don't know, but a lot of boys like her."

"So here's what you do. You win, you go home. She can't turn you down then, eh?"

"I don't think it's going to work out. Winning...won't help my case," Peeta states.

"Why ever not?" Caesar seems truly confused.

Peeta turns a deep scarlet red, "Because...because...she came here with me."

All of the tributes behind stage, turned and stared at Katniss, her mouth wide open.

Peeta Mellark was in love with Katniss Everdeen.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I can't help but feel absolutely terrible for poor Katniss.

She's floored.

I find myself next to her and I wave a hand in front of her glazed eyes, "Are you ok?"

She stares at me, "I have no idea what just happened..."

Nathaniel steps up besides me and puts a casual arm around my shoulders, smiling down at me with bright eyes, "Great job Miss Sun, you look gorgeous!"

I blush and smile back, "Thank you, you did great yourself."

We both move aside as Cato pushes past us in a hurry, bumping his shoulder hard against Nathaniel's, "What's his problem?"

I shrug, "Who knows."

We walk back to the elevators again and before I get on he squeezes my hand, "Good luck tomorrow Hydra, stay safe."

I look at his face, trying to imagine him dead; it's impossible.

"Thanks...you take care of yourself ok?"

He winks, "I got a seven, I feel as if that says I can protect myself pretty easily."

I hug him tightly, "Good luck."

He squeezes me back, "Its been a privilege to know you Miss Inna."

"And you Nathaniel, I'll see you tomorrow."

After a few minutes, I find myself back on an elevator with a bunch of the other tributes. I cannot wait to be free of all of this make up and this dress and be back into normal clothes.

On the ride up I can't help but sit there and wonder, will the friends I've made come after me in the beginning seconds after the gong rings? Will friendships be so easily forgotten that it will be so easy to take the life another?

I catch Cato's eyes and I know I will be seeing him tonight more than likely.

Something is different though, he doesn't make a point to hide the way he stares at me.

Glimmer notices and snaps a finger in front of his eyes, "Hello? Earth to Cato?"

He shakes his head, "Yea?"

"You did great tonight," she trails a finger down his arm and smiles, "I'll see you tomorrow."

The remainder of the elevator ride is quiet, Wiley stays close to me and holds my hand for the majority of the time.

Tomorrow is the day.

We both know it and I wish I could hold his hand forever and keep him safe.

We reach our floor and the door opens, Finnick is there with open arms and he holds me tightly, "You did so well Hydra, I'm proud."

I smile at him he sits us down on the long, plush ocean blue couch.

"We need to talk about tomorrow. What you are going to do at the beginning; I want you both to avoid the bloodbath at the Cornucopia. That is for the Careers and their thirst for blood. When that gong sounds, grab what you can, if you can and run."

I sit there and take in everything he says.

Wiley is trembling besides me and I turn to him, taking both of his hands and mine and looking deep into his eyes, "Listen to me Wiley, I want you to do exactly what Finnick says. Grab a weapon if you can and get out and into safety. Wait for me when you get to a safe distance. I promise that I'll find you."

He looks up at me with tears in his eyes and I lean my forehead against his, "Everything will be ok, I promise."

He begins to cry like the child he is, a child who should be back home with his parents and school friends, out on a boat with his father.

I hold him tightly before taking him to bed, I tuck him in and sit there until he is fast asleep.

His face is streaked from the tears and I clean it off gently with a warm cloth before leaving him to his dreams.

Finnick is waiting when I get out and he grips me tightly, hugging me as if it is the last time he ever will.

"Stay alive Hydra...win."

I can barely nod as my eyes fill with tears, and for an instant, I am scared, more scared than I've ever been in my life.

I could die tomorrow.

Annie appears from the darkness of the hall, her eyes sad and forlorn as she wraps her tiny arms around me.

"Swim, swim, swim for your life Hydra..."

"I will Annie, I promise."

She kisses my cheek, "We love you..."

I can only nod as she pulls back and looks into my eyes, her hand coming up to cup my cheek.

For a moment she looks completely sane, her eyes hold mine as if we are the center of gravity, "Do not let him die."

I shake my head furiously, "I won't, I promise I won't."

She's shaky now as her eyes well with tears, "Don't let him die like I let Urial die, don't, don't, don't!"

Finnick pulls her away and then hugs me tightly, "Go get some sleep."

* * *

The roof is silent as I make my way up, it is chillier tonight than usual and I pull the mint green tunic tighter around my chest.

I admit it now, I'm afraid to die.

Was this how Arlen felt?

I wish he was here now so I could talk to him and listen to his advice, it would have helped so much.

"Hydra."

His voice is softer tonight as he walks up behind me; I can feel the warmth radiating from his chest.

"Cato."

"You were such a great actor tonight, I'm sure you'll have plenty of sponsorships during the games."

His words are shocking and painful; I turn, ready to tear his head off on the spot, "Acting? Acting! You thought I was acting? He was my brother! My whole heart! I watched him die and I will never see him again! How the he-"

He stops me from speaking another word with a kiss that is so full of desire and power I can barely breathe.

He pulls back and looks into my eyes, "I know Hydra...I can see the anguish in your eyes and I am sorry that your brother is dead...but was he really your whole heart?..."

I don't understand what he is asking.

The brutal killing machine that is Cato kissed me, I don't know what to do or what to say.

The feel of the wall is cool against my back as his hands come down on my waist and push me up against the bricks, "I don't want to kill you Hydra," he whispers, his lips nuzzle my ear as he speaks.

"I don't want to kill you either..."

He kisses me again and I kiss him back as forcefully as I can, my stomach is on fire and sparks run through my veins, it's like being consumed in flames or sinking in the depths of the ocean.

I push back though, this cannot happen.

"Cato, don't."

He looks at me with pain in his eyes, pulling me back to him, "Why Hydra? Why not?"

"I have to kill you or you have to kill me, this is going to make it wo-"

He cuts me off again with another kiss but his this time it is full of pain and anger, he pushes against me so hard I lose my breath completely and gasp for air.

The tears fill my eyes and threaten to overflow again but I quickly wipe them away, "I have to go to bed, so do you."

He cups my face in his massive palms, his voice is cold like a winter breeze, "Get away from us, stay as far away from the Careers as you can."

With that one last warning I hurry to bed, my lips still throbbing from those fierce kisses.

I bury myself in my pillow and cry till I can't cry anymore.

The door to my room creeps open and I see Wiley standing there, tears in his eyes and hair damp from sweat.

"May I sleep with you please? I don't want to be alone tonight..."

His voice is so small and childish and when I open my arms he runs and jumps on the bed, crawling in next to me and curling up like a kitten by my side.

I put an arm around him and brush his curls from his eyes, "Don't worry, I'll be here if you have any bad dreams."

He nods and in seconds he drifts off to sleep for a second time and I fall asleep myself, dreaming of Cato and those kisses I wish had never happened but would be angry if they never had.

* * *

Cato lay there in bed, sleep was so far away he thought it would never come. He could still feel her soft lips against his, so warm and inviting.

He wanted her to be with him right now, in his arms, he wanted to love her and keep her out of the games.

He shook his head, No. This was all wrong, how stupid could he be?

Falling for her was ridiculous and it couldn't happen.

It was too late though.

No wait, it wasn't.

He had to kill her, it was why he was here and he wanted to win.

He also wanted to watch her fight, he wanted to see the anger in her eyes, he wanted to see her kill and take the vengeance she wanted so badly for her brother.

But at the same time, he wanted to keep her alive.

He was so conflicted his head was spinning and he rubbed his face with his hands, groaning loudly and punching the bedside table.

"Damn you Hydra Inna," he cursed under his breath.


	8. The First Day and Survival

_**Sorry about the late update everyone! It was a hectic week but I get to exempt one of my French finals, yay! So here is chapter eight and I wanted to address a concern that was in a couple of the reviews. Anything romantic for Cato is going to seem OOC, but as the writer we want to make their stories the way we envision them or we want. I want to give Cato a human side apart from the sadistic killer we all know him to be. I also wrote a majority of this chapter from Hydra's POV because it's the first day of the games. So without further adieu, here is the next chapter! Thank you all again for the story alerts, favorites and reviews! Keep 'em coming!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games or their characters. Some of the lines in this chapter are also from the book which again is not mine, they are Suzanne Collins'. My characters and plotline are mine though, of course.  
**_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

The sounds of the ocean waves crashing on the golden sands of home is interrupted by a brief knocking on my door. "Hydra? Come on, we need to get you to the roof," Moana's voice is quiet in the early morning hours.

Wiley is still asleep and I decide to let him dream some more; I am in no rush to throw him at his death.

I brush a couple of curls from his eyes and lean down, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead and praying furiously that he lives through the bloodbath.

I slip out of bed and pad across the floor, my heart pounding already, "Why, what is it?"

Moana looks down at me with eyes full of melancholy, "Each tribute is injected with a tracker on the first day of the games, it's so they know where you are at all times."

Great.

Not only is the Capitol going to watch us die for entertainment, they're treating us like animals whose whereabouts need to be known at all times.

"Wiley is asleep, tell Kailauni he's in my room."

Moana nods and leads me towards the elevator and a few minutes later, we stand on the roof just as Katniss is released from whatever is in the air.

"Hey Hydra...good luck...stay safe hm?"

All I can do is nod.

"You too Katniss, watch your back."

She gives me a curt nod in return and leaves with Cinna when the buzz of a hovercraft shatters the silence and a ladder drops to the cool, marble floor waiting for me to climb.

"Go on," Moana encourages.

As soon as I am safely on the ladder, it's as if I'm paralyzed and the ladder has me in a static grasp, pulling me into the large machine until the light of day is blocked from view by a large door.

"Please be still so I don't have to place it a second time."

I remain as still as a statue.

As if I had a choice.

I gasp as a sharp pain invades my forearm; the woman pushes the tracker as deep as she possibly can and it's almost unbearable.

In a matter of seconds Moana is with me in the hovercraft and we are escorted to the breakfast room.

I can't eat a thing.

I mean how could I?

I'm probably about to die and the thought of eating is so far from my mind right now.

"Go on Hydra, you need to eat dearest, food will be scarce as soon as you are in the arena."

I eat as much as I can hold down, a feeling of nausea blurs my vision and I want to get out of here now.

I want to go back home to District Four.

Back to my parents.

Naida.

The ocean.

The windows of the hovercraft are suddenly blacked out and Moana and I are directed back to the ladder which takes us down into the catacombs that lie beneath the arena.

We soon find ourselves in the preparation room, where I will be prepared and prettied up to go to my inevitable death.

How people are able to tour these catacombs and not find any sadness or melancholy here is bewildering to me.

Hundreds of children have been prepared for their deaths down here and it's like it doesn't even matter.

I shower and brush my teeth; I feel so numb.

The fear that courses through my veins is like venom, paralyzing and eating away at me.

My outfit is the same as it will be for every tribute in the arena, simple and boring.

I dress in pants that are a simple pale brown, a light green blouse, sturdy brown belt and a paper thin, hooded black jacket that falls to mid thigh.

"How in the hell will this keep me warm?" I grumble.

"It reflects body heat, you'll be plenty warm."

I clasp my crescent pendant around my neck and slip it beneath the t-shirt, hoping it will give me even the slightest bit of luck.

I slip into tight socks and boots that are a warm, soft leather.

Everything fits perfectly, of course.

Moana brushes my hair up into a high ponytail and gives me an elastic black hairband to keep my bangs out of my eyes.

My makeup is simple; mascara and a bit of pale pink lip color.

Moana and I sit on a couch and wait for my call, the fear now pulsating through every fiber of my body.

Small tears begin to slip from my eyes and I find myself quietly crying, to my horror and shame.

He spots the tears and lifts my face to look into his deep, electric blue eyes, "Are you afraid?"

I find myself curled up against the chest of my stylist, crying like I did when my brother died; it's as if I'm 5-years-old again, curled up next to my father when I thought there was a sea monster in my closet.

"I don't want to die," I can barely get it out and soon I'm dry heaving from the sobs.

"It's ok, be brave my dearest and you will go far. Your brother is proud, remember he is watching you and you won't feel so alone."

We sit there for a few more minutes before a woman announces the launch.

Moana gently pulls me up and leads me to the circular plate where I will be starting from.

He hugs me tightly and buries his face in my hair, "Be safe, stick to Finnick's plan and get Wiley out of there."

I nod as a glass tube begins to lower around me.

He kisses his palm and places it over his heart, mouthing to me, "Stay strong. Be brave."

Suddenly I am abandoned to darkness and the metal plate pushes me to the surface.

* * *

Finnick and Annie sat in the crowd, Moana and Kailauni rushed to find them and they watched as the screen flashed with a welcoming greeting.

Finnick had never been so scared in his life.

His tributes were about to either survive or die in a matter of minutes.

Annie chewed on her lips so hard she drew blood, "Finnick? Finnick?"

"Yes sweetheart?"

"Are they going to die?"

She furiously shook her head and covered her ears, shielding them from the noises of the crowd, "Of course not, of course not. Just like Annie and Urial."

Moana looked over at Finnick and shook his head, "She broke down in the catacombs."

Finnick squeezed his eyes shut, "How was she when you left her?"

"She was ok, I don't know though."

Claudius Templesmith's voice boomed over the speaker, just as it always did, "Ladies and gentlement, let the Seventy-fourth Hunger Games begin!"

Annie buried her face in Finnick's neck, "No more, no more killing please!"

He did his best to comfort her as he watched Hydra and Wiley rise to the surface.

They looked absolutely terrified.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

The roar of the crowds is deafening as Claudius Templesmith announces the opening of the games.

I'm absolutely terrified and I look over to see Wiley staring at me with eyes as wide as saucers.

And of course, I feel his eyes.

For a brief moment, I think back to those kisses and the words he spoke last night.

"SIXTY SECONDS!"

I look to Wiley and then to the Cornucopia, a giant golden horn shaped like a cone with a curved tail.

The mouth looks to be about twenty feet high and is overflowing with things that will be vital to our survival in the arena.

I see food, containers of water, weapons, medicine, garments and fire starters.

I find it horribly funny how the supplies that will give us the least help, are the supplies that lie closest to us.

The ground is dirt that is packed hard, there is a lake and woods. Nothing like home, nothing that will help me, except for maybe the lake.

I spot a pair of sais close to the mouth of the Cornucopia and a trident lying a little further beyond.

For the first time, I spot Nathaniel, he looks at me and then I follow his eyes to the sais where he gives me a brief nod and I immediately understand.

I have my first ally.

I need the trident for Wiley and Nathaniel needs the swords that lie closest to me.

Cato's eyes are glued to mine, I know he sees me silently making plans with Nathaniel and he looks furious.

In a matter of seconds, the gong sounds and I am off of my plate in a split second.

Chaos.

That's the only word I have for the scene that lies before me.

Wiley is scrambling towards a backpack that looks far too heavy for him to carry but he lifts it and begins running off towards the forest.

Just as I told him.

The girl from District Three spots him and runs, picking up a spear and aiming it right at him.

It only takes me a moment to jump on top of her knocking her to the ground.

I lose myself to the rage and in an instant I break her neck, the sickening crack signals the end of her life.

"Hydra!"

Nathaniel calls my name and I turn just in time to see Cato behead the boy from District Five.

His sheer brutality stuns me as blood spurts across his face.

His eyes catch mine but I quickly look away and move out of the way just as Nathaniel pushes me down, running one of the sais through the boy from District Six.

Thresh runs at me but not to kill me, I spot a backpack a few yards from me but Nathaniel mistakes this as aggression.

"Nathaniel n-!"

He instantly drops to the ground as a sword enters him through the back.

Cato.

Thresh looks at me with a look of brief sadness before disappearing into the forest.

The other Careers are busy on the other side, I can hear the screams of the poor souls they are destroying one by one.

I struggle to slip the carrying bands over my back for the sais and Nathaniel weakly hands me both.

"Win, Hydra..." he sputters as blood begins to run through his lips, the light in his eyes is quickly fading.

I quickly kiss my palm and place it over his heart before throwing the sais on my back and pick up the trident.

Cato comes up from another kill and spots me as I make the gesture of District Four and place it over Nathaniel's heart.

His rage is like a fire, burning unmercifully through a dry and decrepit forest.

He has me down on the ground and throws a punch directly to my eye socket.

I cannot see a thing now out of my right eye.

My fingernails dig into his skin and I can feel myself cutting him as he weighs me down.

The sounds of tributes hacking away at each other runs through my ears and I give a blood curdling scream.

His hand is instantly over my mouth.

No one dares to try and kill Cato or they would have a knife in their back from Clove before they even reached him.

"I warned you not because I wanted you helping other people, I warned you to keep you alive for myself."

"I will help who I damn well please," I hiss.

"We'll see sea goddess," he growls in my ear.

"Cato kill her!" I hear Clove scream at him.

"Now go, go," he growls as he pushes me away.

"CATOOOO!" Clove scream's are full of rage and I sprint blindly into the forest.

A hand reaches out and grabs my leg and I trip before someone pulls me into the underbrush.

"Who a-!"

"It's me Wiley!"

"Wiley!"

I pull him close to me and hug him as if my life depends on it. "Come on!"

We come out from under the tiny bushes and sprint, our arms pumping at our sides.

My eye is so swollen I can barely see so he pulls out in front of me and leads me as best as he can.

We've been running for a while when Wiley huffs, "Where are the cannons?"

"No...clue...they probably had to wait until the fighting was over."

As if on cue, the cannons begin to go off.

One...two...three...four...five...six...seven...eight...nine...ten.

Ten of us are already dead and there are only fourteen left to fight.

I wonder who is among the dead but I guess we will have to wait to find out.

We go for as long as we can before finding more dense underbrush which will be perfect for us to sleep under tonight.

"Come on kid, we'll stay here for the night."

I hand him the trident and his eyes widen, "You got it?"

"Of course, can't have you running around weaponless now can we?"

He smiles and takes it, examining the cool metal, "Thank you," he breathes.

I take off the bands and set the sais down next to the other, one of them is still coated with the dried blood of the boy from District Five.

I grimace and wipe the blood off with my jacket before settling down under the bushes with Wiley squeezing in next to me.

"Nice find," I whisper as I search through the backpack. There are air tight containers full of wild rice and plum pudding, smaller canteens full of water and a blanket that spreads over both of us, slowly warming up until it reaches a cozy temperature.

No doubt the Careers have set up camp close to the lake and have a majority of the food, supplies and weapons.

They will more than likely be hunting tonight and Wiley and I need to stay undercover as best as possible.

The night air becomes colder with every second and I thank our luck that we got the pack with the blanket.

The forest is full of strange sounds and I fear for our lives every second and pull Wiley closer as we listen to the terrifying noises.

One only knows what's hiding in here.

"I hope Rue is ok," Wiley whispers softly, his voice wavering.

I know he's afraid for her and I pray that she is still alive.

I hug him tightly, "I'm sure she's ok; she's small and quick and knows how to get out of sticky situations. But go to sleep and I'll keep watch."

He nods and buries his head into his hood and drifts off into hopefully, sweet dreams.

I hear the anthem begin to play and watch as the seal of the Capitol flashes on the screen, which is made to look like a night sky, above the tree line.

The pictures of the dead tributes begin to appear one by one, the first being the girl from District Three.

My first kill.

I suddenly feel a pang of sadness as I think about the girl's parents and how they're sitting at home watching me break their daughter's neck like a twig.

It's horrible and cruel but I justify it as best as possible.

She would have killed Wiley if I hadn't of killed her.

Then I see the boy from District Five, the sly red head must have made it, no surprise there.

Both tributes from six and seven, Nathaniel, both from nine, the girl from 10.

Nathaniel...hot tears press into my eyes as his death flashes before my mind.

All he was trying to do was protect me and it ended up killing him.

Great.

His blood is on my hands too.

The seal flashes again and the music comes to an end; I wonder what Cato is out doing, I wonder how many tributes he killed.

Wiley wakes up and gently nudges me from my daze, "Who died?"

I smile at him, I know who he wants to know about, "Rue is still alive, she made it."

A bright grin crosses his face and at that he goes back to sleep leaving me to wallow in my sadness over the loss of friends.

I fall asleep when the smell of a fire awakens me.

A fire? Who the hell is stupid enough to start a fire?

The sounds of feet come running towards us and I instantly know that another tribute is about to meet their death.

Wiley hears the sound and wakes with a start, "What is it?"

His voice is too loud in his sleepy daze and I throw my hand over his mouth and hold him to my chest as the feet pass us.

The sound of a girl pleading makes my blood run cold and then there is a pained scream and then silence.

Whoever killed her is being congratulated and the lot of them are now laughing; it's ridiculous how humans can be turned into malicious animals so quickly.

"Eleven down and twelve to go!" shouts someone with glee.

They're rummaging through her pack to see if there is anything good, "Better clear out so they can get the body before it starts stinking."

It's Cato.

I am disgusted and horrified at his brutish comment; I regret kissing him more than ever.

They begin to head back towards us but they stop just short.

"Shouldn't we have heard a cannon by now?"

"I'd say yes. Nothing to prevent them from going in immediately."

"Unless she isn't dead."

"She's dead, I stuck her myself."

"Then where's the cannon?"

"Someone should go back. Make sure the job's done."

"Yeah, we don't want to have to track her down twice."

"I said she's dead!"

They all begin to argue but then someone breaks from the chatter, "We're wasting time! I'll go finish her and let's move on."

Peeta? Strange, he never struck me as a cold blooded killer.

After a few minutes, another cannon booms and the tribute's face crosses the sky. It's Gwin; another friend lost, I can't help but think it's such a waste.

The tributes foot steps begin to fade as they leave but one voice rises from the pack, "You all go on, I'm going to stick around and see if I can find anyone else, I thought I heard some noise coming from one of the trees."

"Ok fine, but this time if you catch someone, kill them huh?" Clove's voice cuts with cruel anger.

"Of course munchkin, it was just a minor slip up."

"Well make sure it doesn't happen again."

"It won't, now get out of here."

She leaves and joins the rest of them and Cato is left alone in the darkness.

"I can smell you...vanilla and ocean spray, you use that soap everyday."

I'm frozen.

"I won't kill you...come out now."

It's like an automatic response and I climb out from under the bushes, his bright blue eyes taking in every inch of me.

He backs me up against the trunk of a willow and we are hidden from sight by the wispy arms.

He reaches up and touches my swollen eye and I wince at his touch and am awoken from my frozen spell. I shove him as hard as possible, "Don't touch me," I hiss.

He becomes angry and marches right back up to me, pinning my arms to my sides, "What the hell? I'm here to see if you're ok and you-"

"You're a cold hearted killer, don't tou-"

"I'm a cold hearted killer? As I recall, you broke that girls neck in a split second without even considering anything else before you did it..."

"Yea but I did it to protect Wiley."

"I kill to protect myself, and to win. We're all here to win."

I am silenced because it is true, I'm here to win and avenge Arlen.

Wiley will eventually have to die and I hope that it will not be by my hand; in the mean time all I can do is protect him until I slip up and he dies.

"What do you want?"

"Like I said I'm here to see if you and -" he motions over towards the bush, "the kid are ok."

"We're fine, now go away."

He pulls out a small jar and sticks it in my hand, "For your eye."

I take it without a word and begin to walk away before he grabs my hand and pulls me back to him, kissing me with so much force I feel as if I'm suffocating.

"Cato...stop it."

He looks me in the eye, "What if I don't want to?"

My cheeks burn as he stares at me with an intensity I can barely fathom.

"Why not?"

"I just don't," he whispers against my lips.

"Well do me a favor and just get out so you don't make it any harder on yourself when you have to kill me."

He looks away, "It's too late. Put the salve on your eye and take care of yourself." He jabs a finger at the bushes, "You can't keep him safe forever. He's going to be killed eventually."

"Well, I'll protect him for as long as I can."

Wiley peeks out from under the bushes and spots Cato, immediately going for his trident when I stop him, "It's ok kid, go back to sleep."

He narrows his eyes at the tall District Two tribute and crawls back under the bushes, but I know he's keeping an eye on us.

Cato kisses me one last time and it's full of what I can almost describe as sad longing. With that, he stalks away and disappears into the blackness, leaving me there hurt and angry as ever.


	9. Flaming Skies and Hallucinations

_**Hey all! Here is chapter nine! Sorry about another slow update, I've been ridiculously busy since it's the end of the semester. WOO! I'm finally a senior! One more year and I'll be out in the real world; scary thought. Thank you for the favorites and alerts! They are so encouraging! The reviews have been wonderful, keep it up! I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I'll begin on the next one after I finish studying for my last final. And sorry for the repost! I forgot to write in a crucial part so here is the second version of Chapter Nine: Flaming Skies and Hallucinations.**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine.  
**_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

I awoke the next morning to find Wiley's face buried in my neck and the crescent pendant clutched within his small fist.

"Hey kid, wake up," I gently shake him and he gives a tiny moan.

"Shhhhhh," I whisper and he immediately slaps his hand over his mouth.

"Who's there?"

Katniss voice has an edge of fear and I slowly inch out from under the bush, "It's me and Wiley, don't shoot."

She watches as we cautiously crawl out from under the shrubs, weapons in the air. She looks dehydrated already, her lips are cracked and I know that we have more than enough water for the both of us.

"I saw you and Cato," she states, slowly turning a dead rabbit over the remaining coals from Gwin's fire. Her face is illuminated by the dusty purple of the dawn sky.

"Yea and I saw your boyfriend go back and kill one of my friends."

She stares at me with hard eyes before they drop down again to the task at hand, "I had no idea he'd team up with the Careers..."

Her voice is full of venom and I look at her and shrug, "Doesn't everyone? Stick by them and you're sure to last till the end."

"And you?"

"I'm not teamed up with them, it's just us."

Wiley puts his hand on his hips, "Yep, just us. We don't need the Careers to help us survive. We've got Arlen."

My eyes drop to the ground and I slip the sais over my back before reaching down into the backpack and retrieving a canteen of water, "Here, we have more than enough, you'll need it."

She looks at me with a small but grateful smile, "Thanks, take care of yourselves. I wouldn't trust Cato, he'll turn on you in a second."

There may be some truth to that.

"Thanks. You take care as well, we'll see you when we see you."

She nods and we set off.

* * *

Finnick and Annie sat in the TV room of the great training building and watched the screen, he still couldn't believe what he saw last night.

Hydra and Cato kissing?

Was he missing something?

Annie sighed, "They're still alive. That's good, that's good."

"It is indeed sweetheart."

"He likes her, he really does. I see it."

"What? Who?"

She looked up at him with her deep emerald eyes and smiled secretively, "No one."

"Tell me Annie...please?"

She couldn't keep a secret to herself and he knew it.

"The boy from District Two silly, you saw them. He looks at her like you look at me. He's just mean about it."

He shook his head, "I don't think so sweetheart, that boy is nothing but a vicious killer."

"Maybe...but still..."

"Finnick Odair."

Finnick turned to the mention of his name to find a peacekeeper studying him closely, "The sponsors are here to speak with you."

Today was the day that the sponsors would begin awarding their sponsorships to the remaining tributes in the arena and he now had to go face them and see what his tributes were going to be awarded for their survival so far.

He pulled Annie up with him, "Let's go."

There was a receiving room and he could already hear the chatter coming from behind the large white doors.

The peacekeeper opened them and a flood of people came running at Finnick and Annie.

She clutched his hand with all of her strength and stared wide eyed at them and their colorful and sometimes frightening dress, "One by one please!" his voice rang out.

They all continued to push at him before the peacekeeper called for some order and Finnick began taking down names.

"Thank you for support, name?" he stared up at the woman whose skin was died a deep ocean blue with sea green eyes, hair and bright purple lips.

"Oceana Youngblood, I'm glad to help them with whatever I can! Did you SEE her break that girl's neck, it was positively malicious but all to protect the little boy! And ohh I had the BIGGEST crush on Arlen, his death was so sad."

Finnick nodded, "It was indeed, he was a good friend. Thank you again. Next!"

He continued to write names until his hand cramped and he needed a break.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

The sun is high overhead and is viciously hot and far too bright. I shield my eyes as I look as far as I can down the forest trail to see exactly where we are headed.

"Hydra I'm hot...can we sit for a little bit?"

"Sure, come on."

We drop and roll over under some bushes whose limbs brush the forest floor and shield of us from sight and the blistering rays of the sun.

"You can nap if you need to."

"I'm ok, just need some water."

I dig through the backpack and bring out two more canteens and we take small sips from each, just enough to quench our thirsts and leave some for later.

Wiley is soon fast asleep though and I decide that we can stay here for the night instead of going on and wasting more energy.

The sky grows darker until I hear the anthem begin to play and watch as Gwin's picture fills the night sky.

I clench my fists, even more waste.

Nathaniel and Gwin are both gone and I can't help but feel a pang of sadness as I think about it.

The fact that Peeta killed her just makes it worse, I never thought I'd see him kill someone so deliberately.

That night, I fall into a deep sleep and dream of Arlen.

The mutts are on him and I run towards the sounds of his cries but I can't seem to find where they are coming from.

"Arlen! ARLEN!"

I break into a clearing buts it's too late, his mutilated body slumps to the ground and he looks up at me one last time, "Hydra..."

He whispers but then he morphs into Nathaniel who lies there, the sword still run through him, his lips coated in his own blood, "Why..." He whispers.

"I-I don't know, I'm so sorry," I can barely get the words out.

And then I'm looking down on the dying figure of Cato, I am horrified and I scream, "NO!"

I continue screaming until I am violently shaken awake by Wiley who has a terrified look on his face, "Woah what? What is it?"

"You were screaming, I heard people shouting, I had to wake you up."

I immediately bolt up and pull him close, listening to the sound of shouts, "Where was it coming from?"

"Over there!"

"No stupid! It was over this way!"

I listen to Marvel and Clove as they bicker back and forth, both more than ready to eliminate the both of us, everyone knows that Wiley and I are together.

Find us, you get rid of two more; kill two birds with one stone.

"Come on," I whisper.

The afternoon sun is blistering, once again, and we quietly try and pick our way through the foliage.

Their voices become quieter as we move further away and we eventually collapse to the ground, our hearts pounding from the long run.

I turn to Wiley and my hands run all over his face and arms, "Are you ok? Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Just a few scratches, I'm ok though."

I bury my face in my hands and cry, I could have gotten him killed.

"Hydra? What's wrong?"

"I could have gotten you killed back there, I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry."

He rubs circles into my back and gives me a brave smile, "But I'm ok right? Everything is ok, it's no big deal."

I sigh deeply and wipe the remaining tears from my eyes, "How many more rations do we have left?"

He looks down in the pack and silently counts, "Just enough for three more days."

We're going to have to hunt now and find a source of water.

There's not nearly enough food and water in there to sustain us till the end and I refuse to let us die of starvation or dehydration.

Where the hell are the gifts those sponsors are supposed to be sending us? What good are they if they send us nothing?

I squeeze Wiley's hand and another day passes. There are no deaths tonight and I am glad.

We are sleeping when I am suddenly awakened by the smell of fire and burning foliage.

"Wiley wake up!"

I put my ear to the forest floor and listen, there are feet pounding and they are heading this way, fast.

The smoke is already enveloping the forest and I can barely breathe as I gasp for air.

I quickly rip some of the blanket that was in the pack and soak it with water, handing Wiley a piece and then putting one over my own nose.

"RUN!" I shout.

Something is very wrong, this isn't a forest fire, it's a meteor shower consisting of flaming balls of fire raining down on us.

The Capitol must be bored and this is how the great Seneca Crane is fixing it.

Someone will die, there's no way everyone can make it out of this alive and unscathed.

Wiley and I run as fast as our lungs will allow us but not before I hear the hiss of flaming rocks hurdling at us like never before.

I push him as hard as I can and he falls under a boulder that juts out from the side of a hill but not before a searing hot rock slams into my side and I fall to the ground, writhing in pain.

My vision goes white.

It's so damn painful, it's almost as if a great white has run into my side and is slowly chewing on my soft flesh.

Wiley runs at me but I scream out, "NO! STAY UNDER THERE!"

I roll and the flames are put out but I feel my vision blurring.

I'm going to die.

The last thing I hear before I slip away is Wiley screaming for help, he can't drag me up under the boulder, I'm far too heavy and he is already weak from dehydration and the smoke.

A face suddenly appears before me as footsteps stop just short, "Come on kid! Keep up!"

It's Arlen, his white blonde hair shines in the sun and his ocean eyes look at me with great concern.

I reach up with a shaky hand and stroke his cheek, "How are you?"

"Sh, baby sister, we have to get you out of here."

I begin to cry and my vision goes black.

* * *

**Cato's POV **

He could still feel her fingers as they stroked his cheek, her weak voice murmuring her brother's name as she looked at him with blank eyes.

Hydra was safe in a small cave with her district partner and knowing this, he ran back to find the rest of the Careers, who had Katniss Everdeen high in a tree staring down at them with weary grey eyes.

"How's everything with you?" she said with a voice that was far too cheery as she continued staring at the Careers.

Cato glared, "Well enough, yourself?"

"It's been a bit warm for my taste but the air's better up here. Why don't you come up?"

"Think I will," Cato snarled.

"Here take this, Cato," Glimmer smiled at him, holding out the silver bow and sheath of arrows.

"No, I'll do better with my sword."

Cato hoisted himself into the tree but then Katniss began to climb higher, much higher than he could ever go.

After a couple more inches, the branch broke and he fell to the ground, cursing as he rolled over.

Cato watched as Glimmer began to attempt the climb, but the branches creaked and crackled before she could go any higher and she leaped back down to the forest floor.

She tried shooting at Katniss with the bow but obviously did not have the skill to shoot a target so far above them.

After a few minutes of arguing, Peeta spoke up, "Oh, let her stay up there. It's not like she's going anywhere. We'll deal with her in the morning."

Cato agreed, and they all settled into their sleeping bags at the base of the tree, "I'm going hunting, fresh meat sounds amazing," Cato stated and the rest nodded in agreement.

"Catch a fat rabbit will ya?" Clove asked.

"You got it munchkin."

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Katniss lay in her sleeping bag high in the tree and watched as Cato stalked away into the darkness.

She nearly jumped as she spotted a pair of eyes glinting from the light of the Career's fire and propped herself up and stared.

But this was no animal, it was Rue.

The two sat there and stared at each other for a while until Rue pointed at something above Katniss' head.

Confused, Katniss followed Rue's finger until she saw it: a wasp's next.

It was gently swaying in the breeze and seemed so peaceful at the moment, but Katniss knew what lay inside was anything but peaceful.

The hum of the wasps filled the night air and she shook in fear, wasps were awful and because these were the Hunger Games, they would probably be deadly.

Her one guess?

Tracker jackers.

The sting of a tracker jacker could kill you instantly or you could live after a few, but you'd have horrible hallucinations that could drive you to madness.

Katniss pondered for a while, trying to think of a plan, she could use her knife to cut down the nest which would fall below right into the middle of the Careers' camp.

It was dangerous and would take a lot of work, but it would be perfect.

She smiled to herself before returning to her sleeping bag where she found the most wonderful gift she'd ever received.

A small plastic pot attached to a silver parachute.

Burn ointment.

She smoothed the ointment over her calf and breathed a sigh of relief as a cool sensation put out the burning.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

My eyes open from a delirious slumber and I look over to see Wiley asleep on his side, face black with soot and red hair gray from the ashes.

I cry out as I roll over, a burning sensation screams through my side.

"Sh, sh, here."

I am blinded by the pain but I recognize the voice: Cato.

He smoothes something cold and wet directly on the burn and I grip his arm as it tingles and begins to cool the burning sensations.

For the first time, I look down at the burn and gasp in horror.

The skin is scorched and blistered, the muscle beneath looks mangled and destroyed.

"It takes time to work but it will work wonders. It came from home, we use it when we have accidents in the mountain mines."

"Th-thanks," I stutter, squeezing my eyes shut as the salve works itself through my seared flesh.

"So it was you? Not Arlen...I feel incredibly stupid now."

He shakes his head, "Don't."

"Why are you helping me? You could have easily killed both of us or let me die."

"I can't tell you why. I just did. As for him..." He cast a glance over at Wiley's small form, "I promised Clove she could have the pleasure of that kill."

I look up into his icy blue eyes and glare, I want nothing more than to punch him, and hard.

But, I find that I can't. Wiley is going to die, I just want it to be quick and painless.

I am instantly regretting my attachment to the little boy.

At least it won't be Cato who kills him.

"Go to sleep, you need it."

I feel weak again and my eyes droop, my stomach is warm and my vision blurs, "Cato?"

"Yes?"

"Please don't go yet."

I try and take the words back, I need to push him away.

But it's too late.

He nods and I bury my face into his chest before drifting off again; the last thing I remember is his arms enclosing around me.

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Katniss awoke early, her leg and fingers throbbing again from yesterday's burns. She slathered some of the ointment over the burns again before quietly packing her gear and getting a bite to eat.

The strip of beef and the cracker were dry on her tongue and she took a few sips of water to wash it down.

The Careers and Peeta were asleep below, Marvel's snores drifted up and she rolled her eyes and stifled a laugh.

Glimmer was propped up against a tree, the bow lying across her knees.

Stupid girl.

She must have fallen asleep during her watch.

Katniss quietly called out to Rue and watched as the tiny eyes appeared, alert and ready.

Rue pointed at the nest again and Katniss began to saw, listening and smiling as Rue jumped from tree to tree, trying to get as far away as she could from the impending disaster.

Dawn was beginning to show in the east and a tracker jacker moved lazily across the surface of the hive, meaning that the rest of them were sure to follow.

Within a few moments, the nest came crashing through the lower branches and smashed on the ground.

The tracker jackers began to pour from the hive, an angry buzzing filling the air.

The Careers awoke and someone began to scream, "To the lake! To the lake!"

They didn't pack a thing as they sprinted away as fast as they could.

Glimmer wasn't as lucky as the rest, she was stung multiple times and screamed as they continued to penetrate her delicate skin.

She fell to the ground, rolling around furiously and twitching hysterically before she went completely still.

Katniss waited for a few minutes before dropping to the ground, pulling tracker jacker stingers from her neck and arm, staring at the disfigured body of Glimmer.

Within moments, she was trying to get the sheath of arrows but couldn't, the hallucinations hit her hard.

Peeta came crashing through the forest, "What are you still doing here?" he growled as he prodded Katniss with the spear, "Are you mad? Get up, get up!"

Katniss tried to make it to her feet and he pushed her, "RUN!" he screamed.

Cato came slashing through the forest rage on his face and Katniss ran for her life.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato came crashing into the cave, his eye was swollen and his sword was stained by the blood of Peeta Mellark.

Hydra was still asleep and so was Wiley but he fell to the ground and writhed as the jacker venom spread through his veins.

Horrible things descended upon him.

His mother, who had died when he was small, screamed as the rocks fell on top of her crushing her body to a pulp.

Snakes slid up his arm, biting into his skin and making large spiders appear through the holes in his skin.

And then he looked over at her to see her being strangled by the snakes and Wiley being devoured by the spiders, "NO! STOP!" he cried out.

Then they were both dead.

He banged the sides of his head with his fists until he blacked out, falling further into a land of countless horrors and evil.


	10. Allies and Stories of Home

_**Hey all! Here is chapter 10, it's a bit of a slow chapter but I promise I shall speed up soon! I hope you enjoy this next installment. Thank you, thank you for all of the alerts and favorites! As always REVIEW! They are awesome. You guys are the greatest!**_

_**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or the characters, plot line and lines of Suzanne Collins. I do, however, own my own characters and plot line.**_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn**_

* * *

I run, faster and faster towards the sounds of my brother's screams. Somehow, they keep growing further away and I feel as if I'll never reach him.

In a matter of seconds I am pushed to the ground as the mutts swirl around me, beaks poking at my flesh, ripping me apart, just as they did Arlen.

All of the sudden, Cato breaks out of the trees, his sword dripping with blood and eyes full of rage.

"HYDRA!"

I feel myself slipping away, but, he's in the middle of them, chopping and hacking away until I am free, my skin hanging from the bones and bits of muscle and fat hanging out of the larger wounds.

They are on him.

They tear at his flesh and I'm too weak to do anything.

Arlen comes running to me and I am horrified at how mangled he is but he grabs me around the waist and pulls me back, "Come on!"

I struggle against him and reach for Cato, "NO! I can't leave him!"

My brother yanks me back, "We have to go NOW! It's too late for him!"

I scream and try to pull away but Arlen is much stronger than me and drags me away.

I hear Cato groaning and coughing on blood as they continue to rip him to pieces, I just want it to stop.

Arlen and I fall to the forest floor and I cover my ears with my hands and cry out, trying to make my way back to Cato.

Abruptly, the dream ends and I find myself curled up next to Cato his fingers are clawing at my side and the pain is excruciating when he catches it.

I sit up and cover the wound with more salve and bandage it with a new strip of clean cloth before sitting up and moving to Cato's head.

I gently wipe the sweat from his gleaming face as he lies there asleep, his eye is swollen shut and there is a stream of green ooze that continues to flow from the sting.

The cave is quiet except for the repeated drip of water in a far corner and Cato's quiet moans as he dreams of something apparently involving a rock slide and his mother.

Its been a day since he stumbled into the cave, screaming and clawing at his eye, the tracker jacker venom spreading like a wild fire through his blood.

I can still see him struggling, screaming at Wiley and I, scaring us half to death and making me knock him out cold.

Wiley scoots over next to me as he chews on a bit of dried beef, "D'ya think he'll be ok?"

"Yea, he'll be fine, the hallucinations are always really bad the first day."

Cato groans, his hand flies up and catches mine, "You're alive?"

"Mhm, you were only seeing things. We're both ok."

He squeezes his eyes shut and he cries out, "DAMN! OW!"

"Don't touch it, its infected but your sponsors sent you some medicine so it should be ok soon."

He sighs, "I thought you were dead...I-" his voice falters.

"It's fine, nothing to worry about but I'm sure Clove and Marvel are out looking for you so you should get a move on."

"How long was I out?"

"Its been a day, Glimmer has been the only casualty since you've been asleep."

"I see, sad, she was really cool, pretty talented for being from wimpy District One."

I grit my teeth, "Yes, well, you should go now. You being here is putting Wiley and I in danger."

He lies there quietly, his head is cradled in my lap and I continuously wipe the green ooze from the wound.

His eyes find mine and I know he's wondering why I'm dismissing him so quickly so he reaches out to touch my face.

I hold his palm to my cheek and savor the warmth as I feel his calloused skin against my own, "Go ahead."

His thumb runs across a gash in my cheek and I wince, "Sorry," he pulls his hand away.

"Don't be...now go."

He leans in and kisses me; I want him to stop doing that, but, at the same time, I don't.

Wiley makes a bleh sound and rolls his eyes, "C'mon Hydra, stop kissing him, he'll probably run a sword through you the next time you do."

Cato glares and makes a point to get in Wiley's face, "Watch your mouth kid or I might just tell Clover exactly where you are."

"Get out," I hiss.

He's gone too far and outstayed his welcome, regardless of whether or not he saved my life.

He leaves in a huff but not before kissing me hard and angrily.

"I will see you later."

I narrow my eyes at him, "We'll see."

When he is a safe distance away, I turn to Wiley, "Let's get out of here."

My side still hurts but the salve is working its magic. The mangled skin is now a bright, angry red but the muscle is no longer visible and the new skin is sensitive to the touch.

For the remainder of the afternoon we hike uphill until we find a cool stream that quenches our thirst and serves as bath water to wash off the ashes, soot, blood and dirt from our skin.

I wrinkle my nose as I strip to my undergarments and Wiley pinches the bridge of his nose, "Jeez we smell bad."

I laugh, "Well, it's not like we've had time to bathe properly."

I find myself missing my bath basin at home and the luxurious lavender and vanilla soaps we had in the cabinet.

Suddenly, a silver parachute appears out of thin air and we find ourselves with a basket that is full of bathing supplies.

I close my eyes as I smell the scents of vanilla, sandalwood, white peony and musk.

Wiley finds soap that is scented like spearmint and ocean water and we wash our hair and sponge off our skin.

I do my best to untangle my blonde hair and am pleased to find a set of brushes that work the tangles out with ease until my hair feels silky smooth.

We lie in the sun and dry off for a moment when we hear footsteps coming.

I pick up the sais and throw them over my back and dive behind a tree with Wiley who gathers our clothes and his trident in a hurry.

I spot a boot in the clearing and curse under my breath but then a familiar voice rings out, "Whose boot is this?"

Katniss.

"It's mine," I call out, a sigh of relief escapes my lips.

She smiles as I walk out with Wiley, "Good to see you both."

"Good to see you," I nod.

She looks to the trees and looks back at me, we both see the edge of a small boot, "You know, they're not the only ones who can form alliances."

Rue quietly steps out and looks at her, "You want me for an ally?"

Wiley spots Rue and it's all he can do to hold in a shriek of happiness. He runs at her and gathers her up into a tight hug, "Rue!"

She grasps him and grins, "Wiley! I didn't think I'd see you again!"

I smile at the two of them and cross my arms, "So, us against them?"

Katniss glances at me from the side, "Sounds like a plan. I could deal with that."

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

In a matter of minutes, the group of four found some cover and sat around eating dried beef, rabbit and wild rice.

Katniss had to admit, it was nice to have some friends in the arena.

After a few minutes of silently eating, Rue spoke up, "I can fix your stings."

"You were stung too?" Hydra questioned with concern.

Katniss nodded and revealed the swollen spots of flesh, "I dropped a jacker nest on the Careers and got a bit banged up in the process."

Hydra smiled at her, "Smart plan. Cato was pretty messed up from it."

Katniss stared at the girl from District Four, she couldn't quite figure her out.

She felt like she couldn't trust the girl because she obviously had feelings for the District Two brute, but, she also wanted to avenge her brother which meant that she would have to kill him.

In the end, she decided that trusting the girl would keep her alive and help her find Peeta, Hydra didn't have the sinister personality of the Careers.

Hydra caught Katniss staring, "What?"

Katniss shook her head, "How can you fix me?"

Rue stopped her conversation with Wiley and dug in her pocket pulling out a handful of berries that looked just like the ones that her mother used to use on victims of tracker jacker attacks.

"Where'd you find those?"

"Just around. We all carry them when we work in the orchards. They left a lot of nests there...there are a lot here, too."

"That's right. You're from District 11. Agriculture...Orchards huh? That must be how you can fly around the trees like you've got wings."

Wiley gives another bright smile, "You're pretty enough to be a fairy!"

Rue blushes, "Well thanks. I am pretty fast up in the trees."

"Well, come on, then. Fix me up."

Katniss watched as Rue stuck the leaves in her mouth and chewed them up, taking the gooey wad from her mouth and setting it on the first sting.

She turned to Hydra as Rue continued, "And District Four? What do you do there?"

"I'm a fisherman. I spend my days out on the boats with Finnick and Annie fishing and catching crab and lobster."

"And I go out into the deeper parts of the sea with my dad and catch swordfish and shark," Wiley pipes up. You could see the pride in his eyes as he told the story of catching his first swordfish.

Hydra described District Four to the other two tributes and painted a picture of bright sunny beaches and a crystal clear, turquoise ocean.

"So, what's District Twelve like?" she asked.

Katniss leaned back and closed her eyes as relief poured through her body and pushed the venom out.

"It's back closer to the Appalachian mountains. The coal mines are really dark and creepy...they push back far into the mountains and you can hear your voice echoing when you talk. The town is really run down, we're as poor as we sound but everyone knows everyone. There's a forest outside the city fence that is full of wild game that my friend Gale and I hunt..."

She grew quiet after she mentioned Gale.

"Who's Gale?" Hydra pushed.

"My best friend, we met when we were kids, he helped get me through the weeks after my father's death...I miss him, a lot."

"I'm sorry...about that and your father."

Katniss looked up at her with glistening eyes, "Things happen."

She moaned as the leaves continued to work on the sting wounds causing Rue to give a tiny giggle, "Lucky you had the sense to pull the stingers out or you'd be a lot worse."

"Do my neck! Do my cheek!"

Wiley spoke up, "Rue! Your arm!"

She looks down at it gives a tiny shrug, "I got swiped by a burning leaf."

"I've got something for that."

Katniss handed Wiley the jar of medicine she had received from her sponsors and he set to working on Rue's arm.

"You have good sponsors," Rue murmurs as Wiley bandages the area.

Katniss nodded, "Have you gotten anything yet?"

"No, but I will though. Watch. The closer we get to the end, the more people will realize how clever you are."

"How about you guys? Have you gotten anything?"

Hydra gives a curt nod, "A few things, here and there."

"Of course, you are a Career district."

"Not this year. Neither of us have trained beforehand. Never wanted to."

Katniss was quiet, Hydra probably wanted nothing to do with these games because of what they did to her brother.

"You weren't joking, about wanting me for an ally, were you?" Rue asks the two of them, her eyes wide.

"No, I meant it."

"We'll be a great group."

She smiles, "Okay, it's a deal."

The four tributes shook hands and returned to eating, biting into the Groosling that Katniss had killed, parsnip tasting roots gathered by Rue earlier and shoveling wild rice into their mouths that Hydra and Wiley put together.

Rue apparently didn't get much to eat back home and was surprised when Katniss gave her the other leg of Groosling.

"I'd have thought, in District Eleven, you'd have a bit more to eat than us. You know, since you grow the food."

"Oh, no, we're not allowed to eat the crops."

"They arrest you or something?" Katniss questions.

"They whip you and make everyone else watch. The mayor's very strict about it."

Hydra and Wiley were quiet, everyone in District Four was well fed all the time. They were one of the favorite districts of the Capitol and everyone knew that by how beautiful and well groomed the people always looked.

"Do you get all the coal you want?" Rue asks Katniss with a hint of curiosity in her voice.

"No, just what we buy and whatever we track in our boots."

"They feed us a bit extra during harvest, so that people can keep going longer."

"What about you guys?" Katniss studied the District Four tributes and was sure she already knew the answer.

"We get everything that we need when we need it. We keep a quarter of everything that we catch, and usually we catch a lot so we always get decent meals..." she trailed off, clearly she was uncomfortable speaking about it around the other two.

Wiley piped up, "Sometimes though, if there's a really bad storm, they don't help us clean up the villages. It can get pretty bad too. We also have had some pretty bad fishing runs and some families don't eat if they don't catch enough. But usually the other families will share what they can to help."

Rue smiled at him, "That's awfully nice of the neighbors. I wish we had enough to do that back home."

"Me too," Katniss murmured.

She thought back to that rainy day when Peeta purposely burned two loaves of bread so that he could give them to Katniss.

She didn't want to admit it, but she missed him and wondered what he was up to right at this moment.

She hadn't seen him since he had tried to save her and that had been a bit ago, all she could remember was Cato crashing through the trees, swords in hand and rage focused on Peeta.

Katniss sat there and listened to the other three. It was interesting to hear about them talk about their lives back home since she rarely heard anything of the goings on outside of District 12.

At Rue's suggestion, they all began to pile their food together to plan ahead and figure out how much they could eat each day.

Katniss threw in the last couple of crackers and beef strips she had.

Rue had gathered quite a collection of roots, nuts, greens, and even some berries.

Hydra and Wiley had wild rice, rabbit and plum stew.

Katniss picked up one of the berries and studied it, "You sure this is safe?"

Rue nodded, "Oh, yes, we have them back home. I've been eating them for days.

Katniss looked at the collection of food from the District Four and looked up, "You guys have some nice sponsors."

"Yea, they've only recently begun helping us. It took me getting burned to death for them to actually do something." Hydra grumbled.

They all laid out their gear when Wiley gasped, "You have night vision goggles?"

Katniss slapped her forehead with her palm, "And all along I thought those were supposed to be sunglasses. I was wondering why they weren't working."

Hydra laughed as she sat there and polished her sais, "Well, now you know."

After a while, Rue put out the small fire and the four began to head upstream until the sky grew dark.

"Where do you all sleep?" Katniss asked the others.

"I sleep in the trees in my jacket, I use these socks for my hands."

"We sleep under the bushes, we have this thermal blanket that heats up as it gets colder. Its been nice having it." Hydra held up the black blanket that was missing a couple of strips at the bottom. It was definitely big enough to cover the both of them.

Katniss looked to Rue, "You can share my sleeping bag if you want. We'll both easily fit."

Rue smiled brightly, "Oh thank you!"

"Goodnight guys, see you in the morning."

Hydra and Wiley disappeared underneath the bushes, "And we will see you, stay safe."

Katniss and Rue picked a fork high in a tree and settled in for the night.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato lay there next to the campfire, imagining the face of Hydra as the flames flickered and danced in his eyes.

The anthem began to play and he looked up at the sky; there had been no deaths today.

"Ugh, not one death. That means there's still a lot of other tributes left to kill. Perfect."

Clove gave a hideous little smile and rolled over on her back, staring up at the stars.

"I'd like to get the girl from District Four next, she's the top of my list. So is the boy."

Cato rolled over and glared, "The girl is MINE."

"You've had the opportunity to kill her before and you didn't take it. In fact, you let her go. Something is up with you Cato and I don't like it."

He narrowed his eyes at her, "And what exactly is that?"

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were acting like lover boy. You get all defensive when I talk about killing her and you won't let me kill her if I have the opportunity."

"I'll kill her, don't worry."

"You've been showing weakness Cato. Weakness is the worst, your father would be immensely disappointed in you."

"I'll kill her, ok?" he hissed.

"You'd better. And if you don't, I'll do it, and it won't be pretty I can promise you that. I'll gut her like a rabbit."

Cato's stomach turned at the thought of Clove getting a hold of Hydra and torturing her in the most painful ways.

He couldn't let it happen, but Hydra was smart, she'd never let Clove get a hold of her.

He could feel her fingers as they softly wove through his hair, her touch was gently when she cleaned the wound on his eye and he could hear her quiet heartbeat as they lay there in that silent cave.

This was all wrong.

He had to win.

He would have to kill her.

Clove stood and brushed her jacket off, "I'm going to sleep. I'll see you in the morning, and I better see some change in your attitude."

"Goodnight Clove," he bit at her, straying away from the typical nickname he used for her when they were having fun.

She rolled her eyes, "Remember, if you don't kill her, I will."

He turned away and stared intently into the fire, thinking of how quickly and painlessly he could kill Hydra Inna.


	11. Plans and Explosions

_**Alright all, here is Chapter 11! OH man. I am re-posting this chapter due to the fact that I accidentally published chapter nine as chapter 11. Fail. I apologize for how late it is, I've had a bunch of internship and job interviews and its been nuts! Haha so much for summer, hello work and more, boo. But, I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Thanks for all of the alerts, favorites and reviews! Review s'more! I love reading them. You guys are so great. **_

_**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. Party.**_  


_****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

Wiley jumps awake and elbows me in the nose when the sound of a cannon shatters the early morning silence.

"Oh owwwwwww" I groan, covering my nose with both hands.

"Sorry," he winces.

Warm blood begins to flow from my nose and I tear a small piece from my shirt and put pressure on it.

"Jeez, I really am sorry Hydra, that doesn't look so good."

I sniff, "Oh it's ok, I'll live."

Katniss climbs down from the tree with Rue and they walk towards us, wiping the last remnants of sleep from their eyes, "Who do you think that was? And what happened to your nose?"

I know she's thinking of Peeta and I sigh, "Wiley elbowed me..."

"On accident!"

"And I have no clue..."

"I don't know. It could have been any of the others...I guess we'll find out tonight," Rue says in a tiny voice.

I begin to fold the large blanket when Katniss pipes up, "Who's left again?"

I look into the distance and think about it, "Marvel, Cato, Clove, the wimpy boy from three, me and Wiley, Thresh, Rue, and...you and Peeta."

"Wait that's only ten though..."

"Oh yea, forgot about the boy from Ten, the one with the bad leg."

"Still one more left though," Wiley states.

"I wonder how that last one died," says Rue with sadness.

"No telling. But it's good for us. A death should hold the crowd for a bit. Maybe we'll have time to do something before the Gamemakers decide things have been moving too slowly."

Katniss makes a good point.

"Yea, if it gets too boring, they'll probably send the mutts after us."

Everyone is quiet as I stand there, still staring into the distance, a subtle coldness creeps into my eyes.

"What's in your hands?"

Rue shakes her head, "Breakfast."

Wiley's eyes brighten as he spots the two large eggs in her hands, "Oh man! I love eggs."

I break out of my stupor and smile, "I HATE eggs, they are so awful."

"How can you hate eggs?"

"What kind are those?" Katniss inquires.

"Not sure. There's a marshy area over that way. Some kind of waterbird."

I leave them to their eggs and watch with disgust as they suck out the insides.

"Ugh. That's terrible."

I tear into a piece of rabbit and chew thoughtfully, "I bet whoever it was, they were killed by the Careers."

"More than likely," Katniss agrees.

After a few more moments, we begin to pack up, "Let's get out of here."

Katniss puts her pack on and stretches, "Ready to do it?"

"Do what?" Rue asks excitedly.

"Today we take out the Careers' food."

"Are you crazy?" My jaw drops.

Wiley's eyes widen again, "How?"

"No idea. Come on, we'll figure out a plan while we hunt."

I am quiet for a few minutes before I speak up, "We need to figure out how to get rid of the rest of the tributes out there who aren't Careers. That's..." I sit there and count in my head.

"Well minus the person from this morning, that would three...we forgot that sly girl from District Five."

"Oh yea, Foxface, I completely forgot about her," Katniss slaps her forehead with a palm.

"That means Thresh..." whispers Rue.

"I know...I'm sorry Rue, it has to be done."

Tears well in her eyes as she looks down, "I know.." you can barely hear the whisper as it escapes her lips.

"I'll do it."

Wiley looks up at me and squeezes my hand, "I'll help."

"Well, let's go hunt first and we'll figure out all of the big stuff later."

I nod in agreement with Katniss, "Sounds like a plan."

We begin to walk when Katniss asks, "The boy from District Three? He's working with them?"

"Yes, he stays at the Careers' camp full-time. He got stung, too, when they drew the tracker jackers in by the lake. I guess they agreed to let him live if he acted as their guard. But he's not very big." Rue says.

"What weapons does he have?"

"Not much that I could see. A spear. He might be able to hold a few of us off with that, but Thresh would kill him easily."

"And the food's just out in the open?"

"Yea."

"Something's not quite right about the whole setup."

"I know. But I couldn't tell what exactly."

I think long and hard about it, "District Three is electronics and technology, correct?"

"Correct."

"Maybe they've got some kind of electrical trap set around the food we don't know about. He could have built something."

Katniss nods, "You could be on to something Hydra."

"Katniss, even if you could get to the food, how would you get rid of it?"

"Burn it. Dump it in the lake. Soak it in fuel."

I watch as she pokes Rue in the stomach, "Eat it!"

We all laugh, "Don't worry, I'll think of something. Destroying things is much easier than making them."

"I'll see if I can figure out what the setup is, let me take care of District Three."

"Alright, please do."

For the rest of the afternoon, we dig for roots, gather berries and greens, and figure out what to do.

I listen to Rue as she talks about her six siblings and what it's like living with them back home.

Her favorite thing that she loves above all others is music.

"Music? You have a lot of time for that?" Katniss questions.

I think of back home, when we'd have large fishing expeditions and the fishermen would sing old sailor songs from hundreds of years before.

Their voices were melodic and the lyrics were about sailors who pined for their lovers back home but loved their lives on the briny seas.

"We sing at home. At work, too. That's why I love your pin."

I look down at Katniss' mocking-jay pin and admire its simple beauty.

"You have mocking-jays?"

"Oh, yes. I have a few that are my special friends. We can sing back and forth for hours. They carry messages for me."

"Really?" Wiley is absolutely enthralled with her story.

"What do you mean?"

"Do tell."

"I'm usually up highest, so I'm the first to see the flag that signals quitting time There's a special little song I do."

Rue opens her mouth and sings a four-note song that is gentle and harmonious.

"The mocking-jays spread it around the orchard. That's how everyone knows to knock off. They can be dangerous though, if you get too near their nests. But you can't blame them for that."

I find myself drifting away, imagining little Rue high up in the trees, singing the small melody and watching as it passes through the trees to the rest of the workers.

It is a sight to behold.

Rue pulls out a necklace from beneath her shirt, it is woven from some sort of grass. It looks like the rough copy of a flower, "It's a good luck charm."

"Well it's worked so far. Maybe you should just stick with that."

I pull my crescent pendant from beneath my shirt and the other two gawk at it, "How beautiful! What is that?"

"It's mother-of-pearl and ivory. My brother's girl Naida gave it to me before I left, its been in her family for generations."

Rue smiles, "Its brought you both a bunch of luck, that's for sure."

"It has indeed."

About two hours later, we lounge around and eat left over rabbit, along with more roots and berries.

I am beginning to miss the salmon and potato dinners from back home, the food I've been eating is taking its toll on me and I feel like I'm never getting enough to eat.

I don't understand how Rue and Katniss have survived on meals like this all of their lives.

We've come up with a plan and it's perfect.

Wiley and I are going to lure the boy from District Three away from the camp and I'm going to see what information I can get out of him.

Katniss and Rue are gathering wood for the first two campfires that they will light and will then meet at the place where we first ate together as a group.

We finally finish discussing plans when Katniss offers Rue her sleeping bag, "What about you? Won't you be cold?"

"Not if I pick up another bag down by the lake. You know stealing isn't illegal here."

I smile and Rue decides that we all need to know her mocking-jay signal so that we can stay connected with each other in case we become too far apart.

I enjoy listening to the little bit of music as she whistles it, the melody is something that I could definitely fall asleep to on a regular day outside of here.

"It might not work. But if you hear the mocking-jays singing it, you'll know I'm okay, only I can't get back right away."

"Are there many mocking-jays here?"

"Haven't seen them? They've got nests everywhere."

"Okay, then. If all goes according to plan, I'll see you for dinner."

Katniss looks to me and Wiley, "You both be careful."

"We will, you stay where we planned so we don't have trouble finding you."

"Will do."

She and Rue say their goodbyes which make me tear up a small bit.

Wiley gives Rue a big hug and they stand there together for a few minutes while Katniss and I turn our backs.

I can hear Wiley as he whispers into her ear, "Please stay safe Rue, I'd miss you a lot if anything happened to you."

She gives him a tiny smile and rests her head on his shoulder, "I'll be ok, stay close to Hydra. I promise I'll see you soon."

He pulls away and straightens up, wiping a tear from his eye, "Alright..."

I roll my eyes and grab his arm, "Oh come on, she'll be fine. Didn't you hear her?"

"Of course I did! I got something in my eye, that's all JEEZ."

I smile, "See you tonight."

We all laugh before going our separate ways.

* * *

A few hours later, Wiley and I near the Careers' camp and I feel a sudden chill run down my spine.

We peer through the trees and stare down at the monstrous camp and all of the supplies that lie in a pile of cartons, bins and canteens.

"See the kid?"

"Yep."

"Wait just a minute, we don't know if any of the Careers are there..."

We wait for a few minutes and stare, looking for any sign of the three.

Nothing.

"Alright, you remember the plan, go get him."

Wiley nods and stands, slowly walking out of the brush.

I go to my place and wait behind a large tree, both sais in my hands and waiting for Wiley and the boy.

"Hey! Yea you! Are you so wimpy that they make you wait here while they go out and claim all the glory?"

"I wait here because that's my job!"

I sit there and listen to the two banter back and forth, Wiley continues to throw little insults at the boy and I hear him attempt to throw the spear at Wiley.

"You better watch out fish boy!"

Wiley is up and running as the boy runs, picking up his spear, chasing Wiley up into the trees.

Within seconds Wiley runs passed and I time it just right.

I have the District Three boy against the tree, the point of my sais is just at his throat, "What did you make?"

"What are you talking about?," he quivers beneath my furious gaze.

"Those supplies, someone could easily walk up and take something."

He shakes his head, "I didn't do anything!"

I press the blade harder against his windpipe and he struggles, "Ok! Ok!"

"What?"

"The mines that surround each tribute's plate," he huffs, "I know how to deactivate and reactivate them. I dug them up and I placed a ring of them around the supplies. They'll detonate if anyone walks on them."

"Good, thanks."

"Can I go now?"

I narrow my eyes at him and Wiley stalks behind him, a glare is painted on his little face, "You'll be one less tribute to worry about."

My voice is cold and his face grows as white as a sheet.

With that said, I draw the blade across his throat and his hands fly to the horrible wound as blood spurts up across both of our faces.

He falls to the dirt and writhes like a snake before his eyes glaze over and his lips grow pale.

The cannon sounds and we look up into the sky.

"Come on kid."

Wiley and I make our way to where Katniss is supposed to be waiting and we spot her, laying beneath the bushes.

"Katniss," I whisper.

Her head snaps in our direction and her eyes widen at our bloody appearance, "District Three told me about the supplies."

"And?"

"Remember the mines that surrounded each of our plates at the beginning?"

Katniss shivers, "Oh, yea. I'm glad I didn't step off of my plate too early."

"You and me both."

I can still see the video of a girl who stepped off too early one year and as soon as she hit the ground, a mine exploded and her legs were blown off.

"Anyway, he knew how to turn them off and on so they dug some of them up and put them in a circle around the supplies. First person who tries to get in there? They get blown away."

"I knew it was too easy. But, we need to hurry, Peeta is out there somewhere and he's wounded badly."

"How do you know?"

"Cato. He said that he cut him and it's a miracle Peeta hasn't bled to death yet."

My stomach flips at the sound of Cato's name.

We lie there for a bit when we see the girl from District Five, Foxface, creeping out onto the grassy plane that separates us from the Careers' Camp.

She looks around and then runs for the stack of supplies, her movements are sharp and precise.

We all watch in awe as she does a little dance around the perimeter of the pyramid, finally landing within the invisible circle.

She stares down at the pile and begins to pick small things away and place them in her pack.

She's a smart one.

She takes just enough to where it will sustain her but the Careers won't notice if anything is gone.

After just a few moments, she dances again and lands safely outside again, running back to the forest with lightning fast speed.

"Well, how are we going to get around the mines?" I whisper.

"I guess I could try to throw a rock, I've got a good arm, you both can go some as well and maybe we can trigger just enough of the mines to be able to safely reach the supplies."

I sadly shake my head, "I've got a bad shoulder, I can't throw far."

"Ok well...hm..."

Wiley turns to us, "Even if you did, you may only get one of the mines and the Careers would be on us in two seconds."

"He's got a point."

"You're right...its been a while though, we need to figure something out quick before our time runs out."

I sit there and think as hard as I can, "Katniss, your bow..."

She has the same idea.

"If I can shoot that burlap sack full of apples, I can free those and maybe they'll be able to set off a bunch of the mines instead of just one."

"Perfect, do it."

She moves into position and aims, the first arrow tears through the side of bag near the top, leaving a split in the burlap.

She shoots again and this arrow makes the whole grow larger.

The third arrow flies and catches a part of the torn flap and rips the bag apart.

Wiley grips my arm as the apples begin to cascade down the side of the pyramid.

I gasp as I am thrown backwards, I hit the back of my head hard on a tree and squeeze my eyes shut as pain floods my body.

I frantically search for Wiley who is laying a few yards from me, gasping for air.

"Wiley! Wiley are you ok?"

He sits up and tries to take deep breaths, "Yea, I think so."

"Hydra! Your head!"

A pieces of sharp rock has buried itself in my cheek and I clench my teeth; I hate stitches.

"We'll fix it later."

We begin to cough as a foul smelling smoke fills the air, "Katniss?...Katniss?"

She looks up as she tries to walk but falls to the ground again.

We can't stay here.

My head throbs and my vision blurs but I grab Wiley and we make our way to Katniss.

"Come on!"

We support her between ourselves and move as fast as we can when another blast sends us to our knees.

We try a few more times and the same thing happens before the blasts stop and we can make our way without falling again.

Night begins to fall as we run and a brisk chill fills the air making me shiver and long for the warmth of the large blanket.

We eventually settle down and Katniss begins the process of removing the rock from my cheek and stitching me up.

As soon as she is finished I let out the breath I was holding.

"Thank you..."

"Your welcome, get some sleep. We need to find Rue as soon as possible tomorrow."

I nod and Wiley and I bury ourselves underneath the blanket in the comforting arms of a weeping willow.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato angrily pushed the debris of the supply pile around, his knuckles white as he clenched his fists.

"How could that little idiot be so stupid to just leave our supplies and walk off?" Clove hissed.

"I don't know, but he'd better be dead."

The anthem began to play and the three of them stared up into the sky, watching as the images of the boys from Districts Three and Ten appeared in the darkness.

"Good." Marvel humphed.

They settled in for the night and Clove and Marvel quickly fell asleep.

Cato lay there and thought about Hydra, where could she be?

He couldn't stand it.

He quietly stood and strapped his swords to his back, just in case.

A few minutes later, he snuck through the forest his night vision goggles helped him move across the terrain with ease.

A couple of hours later, he slowed down, the sound of something creeping across dried leaves filled his ears.

All of the sudden he was thrown to the ground, someone punched him hard and he growled and pushed them off, swinging and hitting them hard in the jaw.

For a brief moment, the assailant's face was visible in the moonlight and he recognized her immediately.

"Hydra? Damnit, did I hurt you?"

"Cato? What are you doing here?"

She got off and stood up, "What are YOU doing here? I heard you crunching all over the leaves."

"I was trying to find you."

He stared at her cheek and the fresh stitches that graced her skin, "What happened?"

"Just a rock."

"You know anything about those explosions?"

"Not a thing."

"You're lying."

"Maybe. I did kill the boy from District Three though."

"Why?"

"I had to find out what he did to your supplies. We figured they were booby trapped."

"Who's we?"

"Nobody."

"Don't lie to me Hydra."

She shoved him hard, "Don't even think about it."

"Get out of my way."

She sent another punch to his face, "I said DON'T."

He backed her up against the tree and put both hands around her face, "And why won't you let me?"

"You'll get your chance to kill them, after I'm dead."

"Don't say that."

"Why not?"

He backed away, "Just don't."

She rolled her eyes, "What difference does it make? You'll win and get what you wanted."

"I won't get what I wanted."

Silence.

"I'm sorry."

Cato backed her up again and then pulled her to his chest, burying his face in her hair.

"You need sleep."

"So do you."

"Well, go back to your camp."

"I'd rather spend my night out here if that's ok."

"Fine. Do as you please."

"You know I'll kill them when I get the chance."

"You won't as long as I'm around. I will not sit there and watch you kill them..."

He pulled her down onto the ground with him and slipped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer and brushing his lips against her ear, "You won't have a choice."


	12. Loss and A New Rule

_**Here is Chapter 12! It was nuts to write. I had a bit of a hard time but I made it through. YES. I hope you all enjoy this next installment and thanks for everything from the alerts to the reviews! You guys rock. Oh yes, there is a bit of a change to something at the end which you all will notice is a tiny bit different from the book.**_

_****__**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. Boo yea.  
**_

_****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

Finnick sat on the couch, watching in silence as Hydra lay asleep next to the bloody brute from District Two.

This had never been part of the plan and he didn't like it.

They had only just told him yesterday.

He thought back to his conversation with Haymitch and cringed; the drunk trainer was horribly obnoxious and ridiculously hard to work with.

Annie hated how brash the man was and wouldn't be found anywhere near him.

But the man knew what he was talking about and what he was doing.

He could still remember watching Haymitch in the second quarter quell while reviewing the tapes of previous games; he had been a handsome tribute and had outsmarted the Gamemakers with ease, which of course, pissed the Capitol off immensely.

He had sat there on his knees, holding his intestines in when the one-eyed girl from District One threw the ax.

At the last minute he leaned to the side and the ax disappeared over the side, only to bounce back and bury itself in the girls forehead.

"Finnick?"

He looked up to find Annie standing above him, a rope clutched in her hand and her fingers continuously tying and untying the knot.

"Yes love?"

She plopped down on the couch next to him and threaded her fingers through his own, "Do you think Hydra is going to die?"

He let out a long sigh, "I don't know."

"I think she wants Wiley to win-"

"Yes but her bro-"

"She knows what her brother would want her to do..."

Finnick watched as the screen flashed between all of the tributes, highlighting the accomplishments of each one so far.

Hydra was right up there with the Careers in terms of killings and the announcer began talking about the blossoming 'romance' between her and Cato.

Yet as always, the tv anxiously returned to the star crossed lovers, Katniss and Peeta.

Peeta was far off in the woods dying, his thigh had been shredded by Cato's sword and the amount of blood he had already lost was substantial.

Good.

The more deaths there were, the closer Hydra was to winning.

He couldn't imagine District Four without Hydra out on the boats along with he and Annie.

It wouldn't be right.

But then again, if she won...

"Finny you're brooding again!"

"What? Oh, I'm sorry sweetheart, come here."

He opened his arms to her and she crawled in, settling against his chest with ease.

"Get some sleep, hm?"

Finnick kissed her forehead and nodded, "All right, I will."

"Good."

At that, he drifted off into a soundless sleep filled with colorful nightmares of games long passed.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I wake up to a dusty purple and pink dawn, the sun has barely caressed the horizon.

He lies asleep next to me, his chest gently rising and falling with each breath, his arms tighten around me as I move.

"Cato?" I whisper and try to shake him awake.

"Hm? What? What's going on?"

I feel as if I should hate him for his last words last night but I can't.

"I have to go."

"Why?"

"Things to do, people to protect."

He is suddenly scowling and sits up, pulling me back to him with such force that the breath is knocked out of my lungs.

"Stay with me."

"I can't. Let me go..."

He rolls me beneath him and looks down into my eyes, gently running his finger down the length of the stitches in my cheek.

"Clearly my sea goddess, you can't protect the others, you can't even take care of yourself."

I push at him, "It was an accident."

"You've had a lot of accidents in here."

"Well, it's not like they were going to make it easy on me."

"Fine. Go. But, I'll see you later."

"Uhhuh, goodbye Cato."

"Till another hour," he whispers, gently kissing me.

His tongue traces my bottom lip and I unwillingly make a tiny whimper.

He smiles and deepens the kiss but I push him away before I am too lost.

"I have to go."

I stand and brush the leaves off of myself and leave him behind, grinning like an idiot.

Wiley is still asleep when I reach him and Katniss is just waking up.

"Where were you?"

"Where do you think?"

"Ah...you didn't-"

"No, I didn't tell him where you both were. I'm not stupid."

She just shrugs, "Sorry, just had to make sure."

"Wiley?"

"Mhmmmm?"

He stretches like a cat before opening his eyes and looking up at me with those crystal blue orbs.

"Good morning kiddo."

"Morning," he grumbles.

"C'mon, wake up, we gotta eat."

We all pack up and move out, eating cold groosling, berries and nuts on the go.

An hour or two later, we find the small stream when Wiley speaks up, "I wonder how Rue is..."

"I don't know, but I'm sure she's doing well," Katniss assures him.

"Yep. She's smart, she's probably hiding in the trees waiting for our slow butts to hurry up."

We stop a little upstream and decide to bathe.

The warm smell of vanilla and sandalwood fills the air and I smile as thoughts of home fill my mind.

The dried blood from the District Three boy slowly washes away and I feel much better.

Wiley scrubs hard at his now tanned skin, making sure that every bit of the blood is erased and gone.

"Could I use a bit of that?"

I smile at Katniss and pass her the bar of soap, "Of course, here you go."

She catches it and juggles it between her fingers as it slips this way and that. We all laugh and continue to wash, taking the time to fill our canteens again.

My cheek burns and the new flesh on my side is still sensitive to the touch but it's healing nicely and I am happy about it.

We move out again and not before long Katniss stops us, "The Careers were here, but I'd say its been a little while the prints are deep but dried."

"I guess we need to make a point to cover our tracks?"

"Good point, just take off your shoes and socks and our feet will make less of a noticeable print then the boots."

We wade through the small stream and Wiley and I take delight in the feel of the ice-cold water as it swirls around our feet and ankles.

"Feels like the ocean..."

"Mhmm, it does."

"I've never seen the ocean before...I bet it's beautiful."

Katniss voice sounds wistful as she moves in front of us, "It is...I guess...if you ended up winning the games...you could go to District Four and see it for yourself."

We all grow silent.

"I suppose I could..."

We continue on before Wiley stops, "Look at all of the fish! I haven't tasted fish since we left home...can we have some?"

"Katniss?"

"That sounds perfect."

I sit back and watch as they both fish with their weapons.

My track record with spearing fish is awful.

There's no hope for me, and I can almost see Finnick sitting there laughing as he watches me sit here and stay clear of the spear fishing.

With excellent precision, Wiley spears six fish with his trident and grins as he brings it out of the water with the fish flopping at the end of the spokes.

I smile and Katniss watches as Wiley and I quickly and proficiently skin and debone the fish.

"Delicious!"

Katniss stuffs a large piece of fish in her mouth and squeezes her eyes shut as the oil dribbles down her chin.

"Perfect," Wiley smiles up at me with pieces of fish stuck in his teeth.

"Gross! Clean your mouth, child," I giggle.

We save a few pieces for Rue and walk on.

"How's your ear?"

She turns her head to the right and groans.

"Better, the ringing finally stopped but I still can't hear a thing out of it."

"I'm sorry, that's terrible."

"Yes, at least you can see out of your eye now. I imagine that is far worse."

The bruises where Cato punched me on the eye are fading, but the one on my jaw is darkening and is tender.

Later on we reach the site of our first meeting place and we all feel strange.

"It's completely the way we left it..."

Katniss looks around, "There's no sign of Rue, not on the ground or in the trees...odd...she should be here by now."

"Maybe she decided to stay at another area?"

Wiley is nervously dancing from foot to foot next to me and I can feel the sudden tension in the air.

"What was your plan?" he asks, his voice is now full of anger.

"She was supposed to light a third fire last night to signal that she was okay, but you know, the Careers' have night vision and she's probably been cautious trying to get back."

Something is very wrong.

Cato was with me all night, Clove and Marvel were down at the camp site but knowing Cato, if they had passed us at all last night, he would have never said a word.

"We'll just have to wait." Katniss states.

We sit and work on and clean our wounds, Wiley has thankfully been lucky enough to escape anything major.

Katniss and I, however, have not been so lucky.

She helps me clean and patch up the stitches on my cheek and I cover the new skin on my side with more salve.

My canteen provides cool relief for the bruises on my face and I lie there in the grass, staring up at the sky, listening to Wiley fiddle with a couple of twigs.

We snack on some more fish and Katniss eventually disappears into a tree and she teaches Wiley and I how to climb and secure ourselves so we can lie in the thick branches without being seen.

I try my best not to stare at the ground, I fear that I will fall and splat like a large bug.

We lie there in wait, Wiley keeps his eyes peeled and I close my eyes and doze off, dreaming of home and my family.

A few hours later I am shaken awake by Katniss, "She still isn't back, we need to go look for her."

My stomach growls loudly and she holds out a couple of leaves, "Mint leaves, they'll make your stomach feel better."

I hesitantly take mint and begin to chew on it, the sudden burst of cool flavor fills my mouth and I nod, "Thanks."

Katniss scatters a few mint leaves around the old campfire just in case Rue comes back, to let her know that we've been there.

In less than an hour, Katniss leads us to the place where she and Rue agreed to have the third fire.

"Something's wrong...the wood is in place and ready but Rue hasn't been here...Come on."

Wiley is angrily huffing, "We shouldn't have left her alone."

"She's smart, she'll be ok."

We silently make our way through the woods any everything seems perfectly normal.

Nothing is amiss and we all perk up when we hear the beautiful four note song: Rue.

"She's ok!" Wiley gives a quiet shout and begins to run towards the sound.

"Wiley, wait!"

A child's scream makes my blood run cold and I fear the worst.

"RUE NO!" I can't stop him.

I thunder after him, Katniss follows quickly behind.

We could be killed at any moment by the Careers but we have no choice but to run towards the screams.

"RUE! I'm coming!" she shouts.

We break into a clearing and I watch as Wiley crashes to the ground, searching for a way to untangle Rue from the net that imprisons her on the grassy floor.

She reaches for him and for a moment, it is as if time stands still.

The spear is lightning fast as it enters her tiny frame.

Katniss brings Marvel to the ground in one fail swoop, the arrow enters him through the throat and he falls to his knees.

I stare him down as he yanks the arrow from his throat and begins to choke and drown in a pool of his own blood.

"Are there more? Are there more!"

"No..." the sound is barely a whisper as it escapes Rue's pale lips.

Wiley holds her head in his lap and tears continuously fall from his eyes as he strokes her hair.

She looks up at him and tries to speak but it is far too hard as she curls around the spear.

I kick Marvel away and the others work on freeing her from the net.

Katniss looks up at me and back down at Rue, staring at the embedded spear head.

Rue reaches for the other girl's hand, "You blew up the food?"

"Every last bit..."

"You have to win Katniss..."

"I'm going to. Going to win for all of us..." she looks around at us.

A cannon sounds; Marvel is finally dead.

"Don't go..." Rue reaches for Wiley's hand and he grips hers as tightly as he can.

"I won't, I'll stay right here, I promise."

She reaches up and touches his curly hair, "Don't be afraid of death...it's not so bad.."

He wipes at his nose and shakes his head, "I'm not."

He puts on a brave little smile for her.

She looks to me and I find myself fighting back tears, "Keep him safe for me?"

"Of course, I wouldn't dream of letting him die before me."

"Katniss? Sing..."

"Sing? Sing what?"

"Anything," she whispers.

Katniss begins to sing, her voice is shaky at first:

_Deep in the meadow, _

_ under the willow_

_ A bed of grass, a soft green pillow_

_ Lay down your head, and close_

_ your sleepy eyes_

_ And when again they open, the_

_ sun will rise._

_ Here it's safe, here it's warm_

_ Here the daisies guard you from_

_ every harm_

_ Here your dreams are sweet and_

_ tomorrow brings them true_

_ Here is the place where I love you._

Rue's eyes begin to close and her breaths become more shallow.

Wiley's tears turn into sobs and he buries his face in her hair.

Katniss' silent tears slide down her cheeks and she does her best to continue on.

I find myself lost in the memories of watching my brother die.

_Deep in the meadow, hidden far_

_ away_

_ A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray_

_ Forget your woes and let your_

_ troubles lay_

_ And when again it's morning,_

_ they'll wash away._

_ Here it's safe, here it's warm_

_ Here the daisies guard you from_

_ every harm_

The lyrics of the song haunt me as Katniss' voice fades till it is barely a whisper.

_Here your dreams are sweet and_

_ tomorrow brings them true_

_ Here is the place where I love_

_ you._

She becomes silent and all that I can hear are Wiley's anguished sobs.

The mocking-jays begin to sing Katniss' song and they surround us with the beautiful and haunting melody.

The cannon fires, and Rue is gone.

I have to pry Wiley away as Katniss cuts away her pack.

We sit there for what seems like an eternity before Katniss turns to me, "Help me," she whispers.

I look at her with confusion and watch as she makes her way to a patch of wildflowers that grows just a few steps away.

The blossoms are violet, yellow and white and Katniss begins to gather an armful.

Wiley is up within a minute and is helping her and I soon find myself doing the same.

One at a time, I watch as they decorate her body and cover the horrendous wound that graces her torso.

I use my weaving skills to create a crown of blossoms which I lay on top of her head and step away from the beautiful creation.

Wiley reaches into a pouch that is strapped to his belt and brings out a single white seashell that is glassy and perfect.

He bends down and places it over her heart, before turning away and crying again.

We say our goodbyes and listen as a mocking-jay sounds the warning that a hovercraft is near.

"This is where I say goodbye," Katniss whispers.

I look back at Rue and kiss my palm before placing it over my heart and then turn back to her, "Good luck my friend, I wish you the best."

Wiley and I disappear into the woods, his feet are almost dragging and he can't stop his tears.

Dusk falls after a couple of hours of running and we settle in for the night.

Not before long, a silver parachute lands on the ground beside us and I open it to find a loaf of bread that comes from District 11.

Wiley sniffs and wipes at his nose again while watching as I pick it up.

"It came from Rue's home?"

I nod; we both kiss our palms and place them over our hearts, "Thank you," he murmurs staring up at the sky.

We lie there in silence and I think of Rue, my hatred for the Capitol begins to burn again and I think of her, Nathaniel, Gwin...my brother.

The anthem begins to play and the seal flashes in the sky before Marvel's and Rue's pictures shine brightly.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato awoke to the sound of Clove fishing around in her pack, "Only dried fruit, we're going to have to hunt."

The anthem began to play and he watched Marvel's face as it flashed in the sky, Clove had simply rolled her eyes, "He was bound to die soon. District One rarely makes it as far as us. He was obnoxious anyway."

Then they saw the little girl from District 11's face.

Two more down, eight to go.

Perfect.

The playing field was narrowly folding into smaller numbers.

"I wonder where-"

Clove was cut off by the sound of trumpets, "What now?"

"Maybe they're calling us to the feast?"

Claudius Templesmith's voice rings out; it's a rule change.

A rule change? But why?

There really weren't any rules except for that of no eating your fellow tributes or stepping off of your plates before the gong sounds.

Two tributes can win this year.

Cato froze, waiting to hear if there were any other parts to the rule change.

There were none.

Hydra.

He had to find her.

"Cato? Did you hear that! We can both make it out of here! We can both win!"

Clove grinned wickedly, "C'mon, let's go finish this."

He shook his head, "We need to rest for the night. We'll do it tomorrow. Get some sleep, I'll go hunt for a couple of hours and see what I can find."

"All right, but don't take too long."

She rolled over on her back and stared up at the night sky, "Finally, I'll get to kill them."

Without another moment to spare, he was gone.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

Wiley and I sit there, he is wrapped in my arms and I can feel his heart racing.

"Are we going to make it Hydra?"

"Of course we are, I promise we'll make it to the end. You and me. We'll get to go back home and fish everyday without another chore."

I wish that I was overjoyed at the rule change but I'm not.

I don't want to live without either Cato or sweet little Wiley.

I want to get Wiley back home, I have to.

He drifts off to sleep and I gather my sais, I know he is out in the woods searching for me.

After only a small amount of time, I find him.

He soundlessly pulls me to him and I find myself clutching him as if we are the only people in this arena.

"It's going to be us," Cato whispers.

I pull back and shake my head, "No...Wiley is going home. I'm not leaving this arena without him."

Cato angrily pounds his fist into the tree above me, "No Hydra, it will be US. Not him, not Clove. US."

I shake my head furiously, silent tears well in my eyes and I wipe them away as quickly as I can, "It can't be, I made a promise."

He begins to plead with me, something that is very unlike Cato.

"I won't leave without you, don't you see? This rule was made for us."

I can't help but know it's true.

The rule is made for us and Katniss and Peeta.

Only one pair will come out though.

It has to be Wiley.

"I-I can't let him die. I won't."

"Hydra..." his whisper is full of an unbearable pain and I wish he would run off.

"What?" I look away but he forces my face back towards him.

"I love you and I won't leave without you."

The words hit me with such force and I feel hot and dizzy.

I don't know what to do.


	13. Finding Friends and Open Wounds

_**New chapter so soon! I couldn't help it but I was on a writing binge. This chapter was...very hard to write but I had to write it none the less. And yes, there is a cliff hanger. Thank you for the reviews and alerts! The reviews are great and I enjoy reading them! Enjoy and I look forward to writing more. I promise, there will be much more.**_

_****__****__**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well, obviously. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. So yes, thank god for Suzanne Collins and her brilliance.  
**_

_****__****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Hydra stared up at Cato with eyes that were full of confusion, fear and sadness, he now knew that he would never be able to go home.

Not after this stunt.

Cato's father would never forgive him and would be ashamed as soon as he walked through the door of their small, mountain cabin.

"Cato..." she breathed softly before falling into him and allowing herself to be consumed with tears.

He held her as tightly as he could, afraid of what she would say, angered that she was so intent on protecting her district partner.

"I love you," the words were barely audible but he heard them well enough.

"Then it'll be us. You know it will."

"It can't be, I've told you a million of times, he has to go home!"

"I don't care what you say! I'll kill him myself if I have to!"

She pushed against his chest, "You won't touch him."

"You don't think so?"

"I won't let you."

At that she bounded off into the forest without a second look back and disappeared into the shadows, leaving him angrier and blood thirsty for the kid who was holding him back from what he wanted.

As the sun reached the dawn horizon, he reached the lake and a snoring Clove.

After hours of sitting by himself against a tree and trying to figure out what to do, he finally came up with something.

"Clove...CLOVE, WAKE UP."

She jumped up and scowled, "Don't have to be so loud you know!"

"Sorry, but come on, let's get out of here."

"Did you find any rabbits?"

"You might say so."

"You found them?"

"Traces of them, hurry up or they'll be gone."

She jumped up and grabbed her knives, "Let's go."

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Katniss had to find Peeta, he was still alive, and if she got out of here, he was coming.

It seemed as if she'd been searching for hours, her feet were cool in the stream and the sun was hotter than usual.

It was then that she saw the bloody streak that curved along the side of a large boulder that graced the banks of the stream, it continued on and she followed it looking for any traces of her wounded partner.

Nothing.

"Peeta! Peeta!"

There was still nothing but the sound of a pesky mocking-jay imitating her so she quit, in fear that the Careers would hear the blasted bird.

She continued walking when her foot had barely broken the surface of the cool water, "You here to finish me off, sweetheart?"

Katniss heart jumped and she looked around frantically, "Peeta...Where are you?...Peeta?"

She slowly crept forward when a voice caused her to freeze, "Well, don't step on me."

The voice came from beneath her but she saw nothing but mud and reeds.

Where was he?

Her thoughts were silenced as his eyes opened, that beautiful, sky blue in the midst of the mud and leaves.

Her eyes opened as wide as saucers and he smiled up at her with bright, white teeth a hint of laugh playing at the corners of his mouth.

Peeta had done it.

Camouflage, the most intricate and effective use of it she'd ever seen.

"Close your eyes again."

He did as ordered and completely disappeared beneath the surface of the stream again.

She quickly knelt down and began pulling leaves from his blond hair, "I guess all those hours decorating cakes paid off."

He grinned and nodded, "Yes, frosting. The final defense of the dying."

"You're not going to die."

"Says who?" His voice was raspy as he struggled for a deep breath.

"Says me. We're on the same team now, you know."

"So, I heard. Nice of you to find what's left of me."

"Did Cato cut you?" He took a long swig from her canteen before responding.

"Left leg. Up high."

"Let's get you in the stream, wash you off so I can see what kind of wounds you've got."

"Lean down a minute first."

Katniss leaned down as close as she could and placed her good ear against his lips, "Need to tell you something...remember, we're madly in love, so it's all right to kiss me anytime you feel like it."

She jumped up and rolled her eyes, laughing at his continuous ability to joke, "Thanks, I'll keep it in mind."

Katniss tried her best to drag him into the stream, but with all of Peeta's dead weight, it was nearly impossible.

A sharp cry of pain fell from his mouth and she continued to tug as hard as she could to free him from mud and plants, wincing as tears cut streaks into his dirty face.

After a few moments of trying to roll him into the stream, she stopped and left him just at the edge.

"No more rolling?"

"That's all done. Let's get you cleaned up. Keep an eye on the woods for me, okay?"

After digging through layers of mud, she finally found his clothes, removing what she could and cutting the rest away.

There was a long burn streak that crossed his chest, he was bruised badly and had four tracker jacker stings.

She began to treat the wounds, one by one, happy that she could help him but beginning to worry as his skin suddenly felt far too warm at the touch.

She broke out a couple of pills from Marvel's medical kit that were meant to reduce a fever and handed them to Peeta, "Swallow these...you must be hungry."

"Not really. It's funny, I haven't been hungry for days."

She offered him a piece of groosling but he cringed and shook his head, "Peeta, we need to get some food in you."

"It'll just come right back up."

After a few bites of dried apple he sighed, "Thanks. I'm much better, really. Can I sleep now, Katniss?"

All she could do was promise him, "Soon, I need to look at your leg first."

She tried to be gentle as she removed his boots, socks and pants, gaping at what was revealed to her.

The gash was deep and inflamed oozing blood and pus, giving off the most horrible smell.

She had to sit there for a few moments with her eyes closed, "Pretty awful, huh?"

"So-so. You should see some of the people they bring my mother from the mines...First thing is to clean it well."

After a while of cleaning and patching up the wound, they made it a small way down stream and found a cave where Katniss began to prepare a place to sleep for the night.

"Katniss? Thanks for finding me."

"You would have found me if you could."

"Yes. Look, if I don't make it back-"

"Don't talk like that. I didn't drain all that pus for nothing."

"I know. But just in case I don't-"

"No, Peeta, I don't even want to discuss it."

She placed her fingers against his lip but he struggled to continue his words, "But I-"

She leaned down and stopped him with a kiss.

This kiss was probably going to be earth shattering back in the Capitol.

She should have done it a while ago to keep up appearances, but, better late than never.

Katniss stood to leave the cave and go fill their canteens and get a breath of fresh air when Peeta nearly shouted, "Don't!"

"Don't what?"

"Don't go out there, Cato and Clove hunt at night. Or at least Cato does, he's got the sharpest sense of direction and sly out of the two of them."

"I doubt I'll run into him."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because he's most likely out there with Hydra somewhere, kissing her in the moonlight," Katniss stated making a dramatic gesture up at the full moon.

Peeta's face was full of confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"Hydra and Cato seem to have a blossoming romance."

Peeta rubbed his neck and sat back, "Wow, never saw that coming."

"Neither did anyone else."

"Is Cato even capable of feeling love?"

Katniss laughed, "I don't know. Maybe. Or maybe he's just playing on her emotions and trying to make her trust him more so at the last second he can kill both her and her partner."

"That's horrible. She doesn't deserve that."

"I know, but it's probably true. I wouldn't put it past him."

"I hope not."

"Well, don't worry, I'll be back in a few minutes.

As a reward for the kiss, Haymitch sent them a pot of hot broth and she reentered the cave, reluctant to leave behind the cool and clear night air, "Peeta, look what Haymitch sent you."

After a while of getting Peeta to eat the broth, he finally finished it and fell asleep, leaving Katniss to her thoughts.

There had been no casualties and she thought back to Hydra and Wiley.

Now they were in direct competition with her and Peeta, Cato and Clove, everyone.

This wasn't going to be easy.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

Its been a full day and I've seen no signs of anyone else.

My nightmares last night were awful and I barely slept, instead I kept watch over Wiley; he will make it home.

Even if I don't, he must.

But we're almost out of water and we need it desperately.

Its been hotter the past couple of days and my mouth is as dry as cotton.

Wiley finished off his water yesterday bathing and I drained my canteen two nights ago after running as fast as I could back to him after my meeting with Cato.

Cato.

His words still hang in the air around me, echoing back and forth, whispering against my ears, wrapping themselves around my very being: I love you.

"Hydra?"

Wiley's lips are cracked and he shakes his canteen, "I'm empty."

"I can't remember where the stream is..."

Katniss was the one who led us to it, and I have no idea of how to get back.

"What about the lake?"

"You have an idea there...I'm sure Cato and Clove are out looking for us and the others. It's our best shot, we need to turn back though, come on."

We head back in the general direction of the center of the arena, careful to hide our foot prints and listening with open ears to everything around us.

I think back to my last goodbyes with Katniss, I hope she is doing well and further more I hope she's found Peeta.

I can only imagine what damage Cato inflicted on him; brutal, bloody Cato.

I really like Peeta, he has a funny way of making everyone laugh and I always think back to when he stood up to Cato for me and kept me from attacking the bastard after what he said about my brother.

The sun is hot and I have to sit, Wiley plops down next to me and we both groan at the same time, "I wish we were back home on the beach...then we'd have an ocean to jump in to."

I smile, "Indeed, it would be wonderful. I miss feeling the seaweed wrap around my feet and legs. It used to scare me when I was little."

He giggles, "I remember the first time a fish brushed against my leg, I thought it was trying to eat me."

"Well, with the amount of sharks we've had around this year, you'd probably be right."

He shivered, "Yea, we caught a couple of them earlier this season."

He reaches into his jacket pocket and takes out a beautiful leather cuff that is interwoven with brown and green palm fibers; the surface is graced with a shark's tooth and microscopic conch shells.

"Wiley, that's beautiful!"

He runs his finger across the razor sharp edges of the shining tooth and smiles into the distance, "My mom made it for me a few months ago. I didn't want it to get ruined so I keep it in my pocket."

"Your mother is very talented."

He nods and looks down sadly, "I miss her."

I feel a pang in the depths of my heart as I look on, "I miss mine too...I promise we'll see them again."

He reaches over and squeezes my hand, "I know..." but there is an edge of doubt in his voice and I wish I could reassure him more.

"All right, come on, let's get a move on."

I tug him to his feet and we slowly move along until I hear the sounds of the lake lapping on the shore.

I peer out from the forest and see no sign of any of the other tributes, "Race you there?"

He grins wickedly, "You're on!"

We both make a run for it and go as fast as our tired legs will allow us, excited to feel the rush of the cool water.

Without even looking to see what's in the water, we dive in and I soak in the luxurious feeling of the ice cold liquid.

This is one advantage that we from District Four have over everyone else; our ability to hold our breath under water for long periods of time.

I glide through the crystal blue depths when I spot a lone fish, staring at me with big and beady black eyes.

Suddenly, I remember the story that Annie told me; it is the story about how Urial died.

They dove into a lake just like this to escape an oncoming stampede of mutts and he ended up getting his head taken off by a school of colorful, flesh eating fish.

I surface and desperately thrash around, searching for Wiley, who finally breaks the surface and takes in a deep breath.

"Wiley! Get out!"

He catches my eyes and I shout a name he knows all to well, "Urial!"

We swim as fast as we can and crawl onto the golden sand of the tiny beach, our chests heaving as we gasp for air.

"I completely forgot," he whispers.

"I did too..."

I can almost hear Annie's cries as she watched us diving in to the lake, screaming our names, his name.

I close my eyes and let the sun dry my skin, "I'm sorry Annie," I murmur.

At that, a silver parachute appears and I open it to find a loaf of bread from District Four, but more curious that that, there is a tiny drawing of a colorful fish that is stuck in the middle of the steaming loaf.

There are tiny words that are scribbled beneath the tiny picture: _Look out_. And then a single heart at the end.

It's Annie's writing.

How did this manage to make it through?

No communication of any sort is allowed between us and the people outside of the arena, especially our trainers.

I am instantly thankful for this slip up of the Capitol's peacekeepers; the fish that I spotted is an exact replica of the drawing.

I quickly crumple up the drawing to hide it before anyone dangerous sees and runs to get Annie in trouble.

After we fill our canteens, we are on our way back to the forest and back to pointless rambling, trying to keep distance between ourselves and the other tributes.

"Thanks for warning me Hydra, probably saved my life."

"Of course, that's what I'm he-"

My leg is jerked out from under me and I let out a piercing scream as something in my lower leg cracks.

I am hoisted into the air and dangle there helplessly, trying to ignore the horrible pain in my leg and focus on Wiley who is shouting for help.

"Wiley! Wiley be quiet," I plead.

But it's too late.

I hear something whizzing through the air, and instinctively throw my hand out in front of Wiley crying out again as the knife goes through my hand.

White flashes before my eyes and I feel woozy and warm.

"Hydra! NO!"

My vision begins to blur as pain shoots through every part of my body, I pray that my mother and father are not seeing this; but I know that's not true.

They're sitting at home in front of our TV, watching me dangle there, blood running down my fingers and slowly pooling on the ground.

The Inna's second and last child is going to die, only a year after her brother.

It's going to destroy them.

I turn my attention back to the little boy who is grasping on to my upper body, burying his face in my stomach, crying and screaming.

Cato and Clove come crashing out of the forest, a vindictive smile crosses the younger girl's face as she spots me dangling there with one of her knives sticking through my hand.

Cato's eyes open wide with horror and I glare at him, clawing in his direction, "YOU BASTARD! I TRUSTED YOU!"

A brief look of regret washes over his face but he hardens his expression again and slowly walks up to me.

Clove slowly circles us and grins, "Our little trap worked Cato, didn't it?"

"It did indeed Clove, perfect, just as we planned."

I hate him, I hate him and I want him dead.

Clove stuns me as she grips the handle of the knife and twists it, causing me to scream again and Cato to wince.

She pulls the blade out and I let out a large gasp, pulling my hand to me and trying to keep the blood from flowing as freely as it is now that the blade is gone.

I'm not prepared for what happens next, it's too much for me to bear.

Clove comes up behind Wiley and pulls him into a death grip, smiling at me with dark eyes, "Goodbye little boy," she whispers against his ear and then she drives another blade deep into Wiley's stomach.

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Peeta and Katniss both bolted upright when they heard a voice scream from the woods, "Noooooooooooooo!"

Katniss heart sunk as she recognized the voice, "Hydra..."

Tears welled in Peeta's eyes as they listened to her continue to scream, "We have to help her!"

"We can't!"

Katniss pushed him back down, "Not with your leg, it's worse and I won't leave you here defenseless."

Peeta's face fell and he sunk back, "Ok..."

Their hearts broke as they listened to the District Four girl's anguished cries.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato couldn't believe it but he felt his stomach flip as he watched Clove drive the blade into the gut of the small boy.

He thought he'd be relieved when Wiley was dead but he suddenly dreaded it, the look in Hydra's eyes said it all.

She hated him.

He knew that if she could break loose she would run for him first and drive her sais as deep into his heart as she possibly could.

He wanted to throw his hands over his ears and drown out her sad sobs but he couldn't, all he could do was watch as she dangled there, battered and broken.

She was no longer the tough and angry Hydra he knew, the one who wanted everyone dead, the one who wanted to avenge her brother.

She was just a girl from District Four, reaching for the boy she was willing to risk her life for and throw her need for vengeance away.

And then she was Cato's heart.

Every angry and dark part of it.

"Cato!"

He was shaken from his racing thoughts as Clove motioned at Hydra who had quit struggling, "Take her sais."

"What should we do with her?"

"Leave her there. He'll be dead within the hour."

Clove cut off Hydra's pack and Cato slid the sais from her back.

She looked up at him with eyes that were full of an unfathomable hurt, "I really did love you..."

Clove's back was turned as he looked into her eyes, his own glistening, fingers stroking her cheek, "I meant every word that I said last night. I love you..I didn't know it would be as horrible as this..."

She looked at Wiley and then back at him, "Liar...looks like it'll just be you making it out of here."

But now, he didn't want to.

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Finnick stared with hollow eyes as both of his tributes lay dying in front of him on the screen; one minute they were close to the end, the next, they were bloodied and injured beyond repair, left to the mercy of the District Two tributes.

He wanted to kill Cato so badly.

Annie lay next to him, her body racked with sobs as she pounded her fists into the couch, "No, no, no, not how it was supposed to happen."

The District Two tributes left Hydra and Wiley and the camera focused in on Hydra's tear streaked face.

She looked around to see if they were completely gone, and when she saw that they were, she began to struggle, reaching for her boot that was caught up in the rope.

He flew to the screen and gripped the edges, wiping tears away as he watched her continue to struggle, "What have you got up your sleeve girl?"

Annie looked up and her eyes widened, "What's she doing?"

"I don't know..."

With a final burst of energy, Hydra reached the boot and pulled a jagged little knife out of her boot.

He remember seeing her make the tiny weapon one night as she kept watch over Wiley.

She let out a cry as she began to cut at the rope, her leg was making terrible cracking noises as she sawed.

Finally, she dropped and hit the ground with a loud thud, the breath was knocked out of her as she gasped for air.

"Come on Hydra..." he whispered as a small flame of hope reignited his turquoise eyes.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I lie there and grip my hand as I take in deep lungfuls of hot, afternoon air.

Wiley lies there whimpering and I scramble over to him as soon as I am able to and pull him into my lap.

"Come here kiddo," I whisper.

He cries and looks up at me with a face that is as white as the moon, "Am I going to die Hydra?"

"Are you kidding me? No way...not on my watch."

My left hand is useless and it screams with pain when I make even the smallest move to move my fingers, perfect.

"I'm going to pull the knife out, okay?"

He nods and I first tear off the lower half of my shirt so I can use it to clot the blood when I get the blade out.

"Ready?"

He nods and squeezes my forearm, "Ready."

I pull it out and blood begins to spurt up in to my face, blinding me for a brief moment.

I quickly wipe it from my eyes and stuff half of the cloth in the wound before wrapping the other half around his stomach and pulling it tight, causing him to cry harder.

For now I've stopped the bleeding but who knows for how long.

I am, for the most part, out of commission with my broken leg and severely wounded hand but I can still do enough to help him.

I drag him beneath the bushes with my good hand and curl around him, trying to keep his cold body warm, "Please help Finnick," I whisper.

I will myself not to fall asleep, I'm too afraid that Wiley will die if I do.

"Stay with me Wiley, please stay with me," I plead with him.

"I'll try to..." I can barely hear his words as I lay my head down on the warm dirt and pray that someone will help us.


	14. Battered Hearts and Broken Minds

_**Woohoo, got a job and an internship today so thankfully the search is over and as a celebration, I wrote another chapter. No, let's be real, I was anxious to write this chapter so I just got it done and over with. I don't have a lot to say about this one..it says it all itself.  
**_

_**A/N: Re-post, sorry kids, for some reason it wasn't letting me save my grammar changes and I couldn't allow the hideous first version stay up. Boo.  
**_

_****__****__****__**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well, obviously. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. So yes, thank god for Suzanne Collins and her brilliance.**_

_****__****__****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

The sound of trumpets blaring startles me awake and I wince in pain as I jerk my leg.

That's when I remember Wiley; fear pulses through me as I roll him over but I am relieved at the steady rise and fall of his chest.

His face is sheet white though and the bandage is beginning to soak through.

"Wiley? Kiddo? Wake up..."

His eyes open and he listens to the trumpets, "What is it?" he whispers softly.

"I don't know..."

Claudius Templesmith's voice breaks the late afternoon silence and I am relieved at the sound of it.

"My dear remaining tributes, I would like to invite you to a feast!"

Ah yes, the feast, everyone must be on their last scraps of food now.

But it's not food I need, it's medicine, plenty of medicine and bandages.

"Now hold on. Some of you may already be declining my invitation. But this is no ordinary feast. Each of you needs something desperately."

I immediately jump up on my good leg, cringing when I catch my bad hand; I strain to hear the rest of what he says.

"Each of you will find that something in a backpack, marked with your district number, at the Cornucopia at dawn."

We need all of the medical supplies we can get.

The strips of bandages I've made from the lower half of my shirt are beginning to soak through on both of us, and with the amount of blood I've lost from the wound in my hand and the amount that Wiley has lost from the ghastly hole in his stomach, we need at least a gallon of plasma.

"What do you think is in our pack?" Wiley wheezes.

"Hopefully the things we need for our injuries."

He closes his head and lies his head back down, "How are we going to get it? Your leg is hurt too badly and I can't move..."

I look around and fish through the sticks that are scattered along the forest floor from the trees above.

After a while of searching, I find one that is thick and sturdy, it'll be perfect.

I sit down next the tree trunk and look down at my partner, "See this? This is going to help me run."

"Hydra, you'll hurt yourself even more."

"Well, we need that pack."

The pain in my leg is quickly escalating and I know that it can't be good.

I rip the bottom of my pants leg to find that my leg is swollen and badly bruised; Wiley's face drains of what little color it has left and tears fill his eyes, "You can't run with that..."

"I have to try."

"You can't even use your left hand, they'll kill you in a matter of seconds!"

"Doesn't matter, I'd rather die like that than just sitting around and doing nothing."

I slowly push the stick down into my boot and Wiley helps fasten it to my leg by tying strips from my pants around it.

He pulls tight and I am met with a whole different kind of pain, it's horrible and for the first time since I've been in here, I feel like I want to die.

"Alright, I need to clean your wound."

He only nods and I unwrap the bloodied bandage; it's like something you see in a nightmare.

His skin is beginning to fester around the wound and a sickly smell wafts into my nose, "Ughhh."

He pinches his nose and groans, "That's it, I'm going to die."

"No, you aren't, I'll fix it."

I pour water from my canteen around the hole and clean what I can, wiping away blood clots that flow from the water and cleaning out any dirt or debris that has gotten inside of the wound.

I wash the bandages with what little water we have left and wrap him up again, "There."

"Thank you...it feels better."

I smile and reach down, gently stroking his curly red hair.

"Good. I won't have you dying if I can help it."

"I'm not afraid to die, Rue said it's not so bad. She was strong too."

Hot tears press into my eyes and I wipe them on my sleeve, "She was indeed, but your mother will never forgive me if I come back without you."

"She would. It isn't your fault. You've brought me this far and without you, I probably would have died at the bloodbath."

"I suppose so..."

"I want you to win. I want you to win for your brother."

"Arlen would want me to save you."

"He would want you to make the smart choice and let me go."

He squeezes my right hand and smiles, "I'll really miss you Hydra, I never had a big sister, just my little brothers, but, you've been like one. I really like it."

"Oh, quit talking like that, I'll be your big sister when we get home."

He sighs, "Ok."

I continue to run my fingers through his hair and think about how I will make the seemingly impossible run to the feast.

If I can make it to the edge of the woods by tonight, I can sleep there and make a break for it at dawn before anyone else does.

They'll probably do the same thing though.

It's the only plan I've got and the only thing that I can do; I don't want to leave Wiley alone but I can't lift him and make his wound worse.

"Wiley? I'm going to get to the edge of the forest tonight and sleep there so I can be in place right at dawn when the feast begins."

He looks up at me and shivers, "Ok...I won't be going anywhere."

"You better not be...or else."

He gives a pained laugh, "Or else what?"

"I'll make you swim with the sharks when we get back to District Four."

"All right, all right, I'll stay."

We lie there until nightfall and I kiss his tiny forehead, "I won't be far and I'll be back in the morning. Hopefully, with everything I need to patch you up."

"Be careful please," he murmurs.

"I will. I promise."

The night air is much colder than it was yesterday and now I have no blanket to protect him.

I take off my jacket and spread it over him, tucking it in on the sides and making sure that no part of him is exposed.

"There you go, sleep tight."

"I'll try, you too."

Before I go, a silver parachute drops from the sky and I tear open the package to reveal a tiny, hot meal of bread and wild rice soup.

"Perfect, dinner for you."

A small pill rolls out from beneath the package and I stare at it, I recognize it to be one of the pain pills that they kept back home in the district medical kits kept on board the ships at sea.

Anytime a sailor was injured when fishing, he could pop one of these pills and take the edge off, just enough to allow him to continue his days work.

I swallow it and am relieved as a cool tingle flits through my body, reducing the pain in both my hand and leg.

Wiley sips on the soup and swallows what he can of the bread before he drifts off into what I hope are pleasant dreams.

I reluctantly leave him behind and pray that he'll make it through the night without me.

"You better send us something good Finnick," I grumble.

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Finnick pounded his fist onto the table as Seneca Crane and the rest of the room jumped back.

"That's not good enough!"

"It's how the games work Mr. Odair, you should know that." Crane reminded cooly.

"Both of my tributes are out there badly injured and one of them may be dying, and you're only sending enough for ONE of them?"

"I'm sorry Finnick, it's all we can do."

"NO! You could do a lot more! You won't though because you're all cruel bastards who enjoy a good show!"

Finnick slammed out of the room and took the elevator back up to floor four; his heart was hammering against his ribcage and his face was beet red with anger.

Annie was waiting for him on the couch, rocking back and forth and hugging her knees to her chest, hair tangled and eyes wild.

"What are they giving them?"

"Just enough for one, they'll have to choose who lives and who dies."

Tears filled his eyes and he buried his face in his palms, "Come now Finny, don't cry."

She gently wiped his tears away and kissed him, "Whatever happens was meant to happen."

He looked up at her and for a moment, he caught a glimpse of the Annie he'd known from before her time in the Arena.

"It all is happening for a reason," she whispered against his ear, gently twirling her finger in a lock of his bronze hair.

"Remember what Haymitch said," she reminded.

He nodded, "I know...I was just hoping...I don't know that they'd both make it."

"We all were...but it can't happen."

Finnick pulled her to him and buried his face in her hair, letting go of the tears he'd been holding in since they told him what they would be giving his tributes at the feast.

He couldn't imagine either Hydra or Wiley dead.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

The stars shone brightly as Cato slashed through the forest, looking for any sign of Katniss, Peeta, or any of the other remaining tributes.

Clove had decided to stay behind, apparently she deserved to rest after the trophies she had taken for herself today.

"I have to save up my strength for tomorrow, you know, they'll all be coming out at once and if we can, we might be able to kill them all before they reach the packs and win without need for what's in ours."

"Good point. I'll go see if one may be straggling along, eliminate someone else so that would be one less person to worry about."

"Ok, District Four obviously isn't dead yet, go finish them off while you're out."

"Will do. I'll be back in a few hours."

Cato suddenly whipped to the side when he heard the faint rustling of leaves, it sounded as if something was dragging an object along the forest floor.

Quietly, he hid behind the trunk of a large oak tree and waited as the dragging got closer.

In a split second, Cato jumped from behind the tree and slammed into whoever it was walking and sent them both careening to the hard ground, "GET...OFF!"

The cry was muffled beneath his hand as he prepared to drive his sword through the person lying beneath him.

"MY LEG! GET OFF!"

She bit his hand and he immediately let go, rolling onto his side and throwing his arms up in front of his face as she began to throw punches.

"Hydra! Hydra, stop!"

She continued to punch until she was huffing and coughing on sobs; he could tell that she was growing weaker by the second and he let her continue to punch until she fell against a tree completely out of breath.

He couldn't believe it, he had figured that she was still strung up in that tree and that he was going to have to cut her down.

He brought a hand up to her face but she pushed him away, "Don't touch me!" she hissed.

"I'm sorry about this afternoon, I really am Hydra, I-I just wanted it be us so I had to find a way to get rid of him."

"Yea, well he isn't dead yet!"

Cato's eyes went wide, "What?"

"That's right, I cut myself down and pulled the knife out of him. He's bandaged and doing well. I'm going to go get our pack tomorrow and heal him. We're getting out of here."

"You know they won't let you both survive..."

"Shut up, they will."

She threw her fist at his jaw and he caught it, staring at the blood soaked bandage, "Let me look at this."

"No, it's fine."

"I said, let me have it."

He gripped her arm tightly and began to unwrap the bandage, staring in horror at the damage that Clove had done.

There was a clear hole that went right through the bone, tendons and flesh. And what was left of the ligaments were rotting from debris caught in the wound.

"Damnit," he growled.

He poured water through the hole and she winced in pain as he cleaned it, "I'm sorry..."

"At least it's not in my stomach," she bit.

Cato was silent and gritted his teeth as he examined her leg.

"You can't go anywhere on this."

"I'm getting our pack and that's final!"

"I'll get your pack."

She was stunned to silence, "What? Why?"

"Don't ask."

"I don't need your help."

"Clearly you don't."

"What do you know?"

"That you're not going to get far on that leg."

"Whatever."

He looked at her and roughly grabbed her face, cupping it in his giant palms, "I'm helping you because..."

"Let me guess, because you love me?"

"As a matter of fact I do."

"I'm sure, especially after that lovely little stunt you pulled."

"I told you why I did it!"

"I don't ca-"

He caught her mouth with a kiss and she groaned.

She wished he'd stop doing that.

"If he dies...I'll never forgive you," she whispered.

"And even if we did make it out of here, I will never see you again."

Her threat scared even him, he couldn't bear the thought of never seeing her if they made it, it was the only reason he wanted to.

"All right. Get some sleep, please. I'll wake you when it's time to go."

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I hate him so much but for some strange reason, I can't make myself stop loving him.

It's impossible.

He wraps me in his arms and puts his jacket around me to keep me warm, sitting there, protectively watching over me as we wait for the first light of dawn.

His intentions were good, but he went about it the wrong way and managed to anger me in the process.

I hope that my threat will give him the incentive to help Wiley and get us both out of here.

If he loves me, he'll die and let us go.

A few hours later, Cato gently nudges me awake, kissing me on the cheek he helps me stand, "Come on, it's time to go."

We reach the edge of the forest and from what I can see, there is no one here.

I startle as the base of the horn splits; a table slowly rises to the surface and it is covered with a snowy white table cloth adorned with five backpacks.

There are two large black ones with the numbers _2_ and _11_, a medium-size green one with the number_ 5_, a tiny orange one that is marked with a _12_, and a large aqua one with the number_ 4_.

Cato and I watch as the red headed girl from District Five darts out and grabs her pack, speeding back into the forest.

I wish I had that agility right now, she's a lucky girl.

"Alright, I'm going for yours and mine. I'll be back."

"No, I'll go for mine, watch my back."

"Hydra, you can't do any-"

I cut him off though by breaking into the clearing, half hopping and half running for the table.

Cato stays behind and stays on the look out when Katniss sprints into the clearing.

Her eyes catch mine and a brief look of relief floods her face, but when she sees that I am without Wiley, she frowns.

"Hydra! I thought you were dead!"

"No, Wiley is injured badly though, Clove got him."

She looks down at my leg and tries to help me along, "How did that happen?"

"It was a trap."

"Your hand...Clove?"

"Correct!"

A knife comes whizzing at us and Katniss immediately blocks it with her bow.

"GO! I'll hold her off!"

I hobble to the table and grab our pack, it is far too heavy but I hoist it upon my back and try to move quickly.

"CLOVE! NO!"

It's Cato's voice.

She turns and glares at him, "WHAT! YOU'RE HELPING HER?"

He runs for me but she is faster.

Clove is furious and she comes sprinting but Katniss shoots and puts an arrow through her upper left arm.

Katniss turns and I throw her the tiny orange pack, "Come on!"

She runs to me and puts my arm around her neck and we struggle to get out of there.

We suddenly stop when a knife comes flying and cuts Katniss just above her eyebrow, "Katniss!"

Clove slams into her and sends us both flying to the ground, she sends a hard punch right onto my left hand and I am knocked breathless and scream as pain invades my head.

She's on top of Katniss, pinning her to the ground with her knees, "Where's your boyfriend, District Twelve? Still hanging on?"

And then she turns to me and grins, "I bet he's going to die, how's the little boy? Close to death I can imagine?"

I try to stagger to my feet but she knocks me down with another fist to my sternum.

"I'll deal with you in a moment."

Cato is frozen to the ground, he won't move as Clove catches his eye.

"It's okay, Cato. I'll forgive you, but I'm not so sure your father will."

This really makes him falter and he hangs his head in shame as she turns back to Katniss, "He's out there, probably on his way to help me...PEETA!"

Clove throws a fist into Katniss' windpipe and she gives that wicked little grin, "He's nearly dead. Cato knows where he cut him. Right Cato?"

He only nods.

"You've probably got him strapped up in some tree while you try to keep his heart going. What's in the pretty little backpack? That medicine for Lover Boy? Too bad he'll never get it."

Clove opens her jacket to reveal a beautiful variety of glistening knives, "I promised Cato if he let me have you, I'd give the audience a good show."

"Cato!" I plead but he stares at me with glassy eyes, Clove effectively put him in his place with the comment about his father.

"He won't help you, he's already in enough trouble as it is. And forget it District Twelve. We're going to kill you. Just like we did your pathetic little ally...what was her name? The one who hopped around in the trees? Rue? Well, first Rue, then you, of course little Hydra here and I'm sure sad, tiny Wiley is going to be dead in a matter of minutes. Then, I think we'll just let nature take care of Lover Boy. How does that sound?...Now...where to start?"

I stare at the horrific little demon that sits on top of Katniss, trying to decide just what to do with her, "I think I'll start with your mouth...yes, I don't think you'll have much use for your lips anymore. Want to blow Lover Boy one last kiss?"

Katniss spits blood and saliva at her and she howls with rage, "All right then. Let's get started!"

"No wait!"

Clove stops and turns to me, her eyes pierce my skull and I curse myself for saying anything.

"What's that?"

I gather up what courage I have left, "I said stop."

"Look at yourself Inna...I wonder what your silly brother is thinking of you now? Oh wait...we'll never know. He's dead. I forgot."

Tears fill my eyes and I feel the energy draining from me as I struggle to hold them in.

"Cato was right you know...he would have never won even if the mutts hadn't come after him, he wasn't good enough. It looks like you'll be dying just as he did; humiliating isn't it?"

Katniss goes to say something but she slams her fist into the girl's windpipe again.

Clove leans down and her lips brush my ear, "I remember hearing him scream your name...and look...you've failed him."

With a burst of energy, I fly up and knock Clove from Katniss chest and begin to punch her with my good hand over and over again.

I am taken by surprise when I am briskly but gently picked off of her and dropped to the ground.

I look up and my eyes widen at the scene before me, Clove is dangling at least a foot off of the ground, imprisoned in Thresh's brawny arms.

I help Katniss up and she gasps as we stare with gaping mouths; Thresh flips Clove around and throws her to the ground like a rag doll.

He's even bigger than I imagined and I am even scared of him as he glowers at the tiny girl.

Katniss and I both jump at the sound of his deep voice, "What'd you do to that little girl? You kill her?"

Clove is struggling to scoot backwards, her eyes nervously shoot to Cato, "No! No, it wasn't me!"

"You said her name. I heard you. You kill her?"

His eyes are full of rage as he continues, "You cut her up like you were going to cut up this girl here?"

"No! No, I-"

She suddenly spots the stone in his hand, it's the size of a loaf of bread and could easily do a lot of damage.

She screams in terror, "Cato! CATO! Help me, please!"

Cato moves forward and Thresh moves into a defensive position as he walks closer, features as hard as stone, "Help yourself...aren't you supposed to be the best?"

Horror fills her eyes as she cries out, "I didn't mean what I said about your father, I didn't, honest!"

I stare at her and find myself laughing hollowly, in a matter of seconds, the fierce Clove has been changed from a fearsome killer to a helpless little girl.

"If there is one thing I know...it's that you always say what you mean. You told me that when were back home training, remember?"

A look of realization crosses her face and she screams as Thresh brings down the rock and bashes her on the temple.

She's dead; the size of the dent in her head is large and there's no way she could have survived that.

Cato breaks into a run and throws my backpack over his shoulder, hoisting me on to the other shoulder and he runs off as I grimace at the severe pain in my leg.

"Where's the boy?"

"Where the trap was!"

We finally near the small clearing where the trap was set and he quickly sets me down and I scramble under the busy to find Wiley struggling for air.

"Wiley! What's wrong!"

His eyes slowly open but he shouts and jumps back at the site of Cato, "What's he doing here!"

"Helping. Come here."

"Didn't he help trap us?"

"Yea but I'm helping you now, so get over it pipsqueak."

Cato's voice is full of anger and sadness, I know he's thinking of Clove.

I open the pack and sort through the contents, finding packets of plasma, a needle, a tube and a large white brace.

"Tell me what's wrong," I ask again, my voice quavering as he continues to gasp for breath.

"I-I can't breathe, I've been dizzy for a little while."

That's not good and I know it.

I count the packs of plasma again and my heart immediately drops, there's only enough blood for one of us.

Anger blinds me and I throw the packs to the dirt and jump up, staring at the sky and screaming, "IS THIS THE BEST YOU COULD DO FINNICK? JUST ENOUGH FOR ONE!"

Cato is on me and pulls me down, "Choose now."

The bandage on my hand is soaked and the hole in my hand is worsening as blood continues to drain from the rotting flesh.

If I don't get the bad blood drawn out and the fresh blood in, I'll surely die of blood poisoning.

If Wiley doesn't get the blood then he'll die from blood loss.

"This is your fault!" I shout at Cato; I don't care if he's sad or hurt or distressed as a result of Clove's death.

I'm glad she's gone.

A cannon booms and I pound my fist into the ground, "That is what you get!"

Cato grabs the supplies and goes to Wiley, putting the needle and tube together but a small voice stops him, "Give it go Hydra."

I gasp and shake my head, I feel like I'm going crazy, the Capitol is more than likely envisioning me becoming just like Annie Cresta.

"No Wiley! No, no! You need it!"

He squeezes my hand and then brings it to his cheek, smiling bravely, "I told you I'm not afraid to die..."

He looks to Cato and musters up an icy glare, "Take care of her, she's my big sister."

I can't cry, I'm too stunned to speak; sweet, brave Wiley staring into the eyes of death with a smile on his face.

He reaches into the tiny leather pouch at his waist and brings out the leather cuff, "Take it...don't forget me, okay?"

I slip the cuff around my wrist and lace it up, allowing him to see it and gaining an even wider grin than the first, "It looks good on you."

His breathing becomes more labored and I watch hopelessly as the blood begins to soak the bandage again, draining him of life.

"I miss you already Hydra."

I grip his hand tightly and hold it against my cheek, "I'm so sorry kiddo..."

He coughs and a small bit of blood comes up, "Tell my mom and dad, I love them very much."

At that, his last breath leaves his body and he is gone from me.

I gather him into my arms and sob uncontrollably, begging him to not go.

The cannon booms and Cato gently touches my shoulder, "He's gone..."

His arms wrap around me and I bury myself into his chest, taking fistfuls of his t-shirt and screaming until my vision goes black and the world around fades away.

* * *

_**Thank you for all of the story subscriptions and favorites but REVIEW REVIEW! I love feedback and of course, all constructive criticism, suggestions and anything else are welcomed!**_

_**Till the next chapter :)  
**_


	15. Far Away Dreams and Certain Death

_**I'm on a rollll woohoo! This chapter was another intense one and I was so psyched to write it that I went ahead and did so. Enjoy!**_

_****__****__****__****__**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well, obviously. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. So yes, thank god for Suzanne Collins and her brilliance.**_

_****__****__****__****__****__**Read on! xoxx,~Carolyn  
**_

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Finnick and Annie lay in bed, both staring at the ceiling, eyes wide and glazed.

Wiley was dead and neither could believe it.

Finnick was going to have to go home and face the Ur's without Wiley and he didn't know if he could do it.

"I can't believe he's gone..." Finnick whispered.

"I know Finny...I-did you see Hydra?"

He couldn't forget her face as she screamed and cursed him, falling back to Wiley's side before he was lost.

"She's going to end up like me..."

"Nothing is wrong with you."

"I-all right..."

"I should have tried to get them to send more."

"They wouldn't have and you know it."

He closed his eyes and sat up, "I have to talk to Haymitch. I'll be back."

"Ok...hurry back to me."

He kissed her softly and mustered up a small smile, "I will."

Finnick took the elevator up to the twelfth floor and stormed into the sitting room of District 12 to find Haymitch drinking his self away on the couch.

"Haymitch."

"Finnick, hello and welcome. Made up your mind yet?"

"You can have her. But, I swear, if she dies, I will find you and you will pay."

"It'll all be handled quite well Mr. Odair, I can assure you."

"Congratulations on both of your tributes making it so far."

"Well, thank you, I wish I could say the same to you."

"Goodbye," Finnick grumbled.

"Tell Annie I said hello!" Haymitch called, laughing as he took another swig from the brown bottle.

He glared and walked down the hall; there were many messages to get out.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

The ocean waves crest and fall upon me as I cut through the turquoise ocean, bubbles flowing from my mouth as I exhale slowly.

Fish of every color twirl around me, their scales shimmer like gems in the sunlight and none of them attempt to take my head off.

I break the surface and inhale the salty air, enjoying the warm breeze as it creates tiny ripples in the water.

The sand squishes between my toes as I make my way to shore and lie on the golden sand wondering if I'm really back home.

I hope that this isn't a dream but my happiness is quickly broken by the voice of my brother.

This isn't real.

"How are the games baby sister?"

"Oh you know, bloody and chaotic."

"He's dead, isn't he?"

I silently nod.

"I see...I'm sorry. At least he is out of pain."

"He shouldn't have been in pain in the first place."

"It wasn't your fault."

I roll over on my side and look into his bright eyes, "I'm ready to be done."

"It's not over yet."

"For me it is, I'd rather just stay here."

"You have to wake up, Hydra."

"There's nothing left for me now that Wiley is dead."

"What about him?"

Arlen peers into my eyes and I look up at the sky, trying to avoid his piercing gaze.

"I don't need him. He doesn't need me. That's that."

"You're wrong."

I sit up and nearly shout at him, "He's the one who got Wiley killed!"

"And he did it because he wants to make it out with you."

"What kind of an excuse is that?"

"When I was in the Arena, I was willing to do anything to get out and back to Naida. I would have even killed Azure. It wasn't the right idea, but I wanted more than anything to get home."

"I would have never killed Wiley. Even though I love him, I wouldn't have."

"He saw that and he made the choice."

"Arlen, he killed Wiley, Nathaniel, all of them."

"He didn't Hydra, Snow did."

The name of our president hits me like a ton of bricks.

The Capitol is to blame.

They've killed every tribute that has died in these games.

All because of one stupid, rebellious district.

Arlen's wisdom once again silences me.

"Now go, you need to wake up."

I bite my lip, "All right."

I stand and turn back to the ocean, looking back behind me, I see that Arlen has been joined by a tan and healthy Wiley who grins at me and waves.

Tears well in my eyes and I smile softly, kissing my palm, I place it over my heart.

They do the same and I turn and run back into the ocean, diving beneath the white foaming waves.

I swim as deep as I can before I awake.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato watched as Hydra slept, it'd been two days since her district partner died and she still hadn't woken up.

He looked up through the clear plastic tent he'd set up to keep the rain away from her, watching as tiny drops of water slid down the slippery fabric.

Sometimes he'd be afraid that she'd stopped breathing but every time he checked, her chest would gently rise and fall beneath his hand.

On the second night, she awoke, gasping for air and running her hands over her hair as if ringing water from it.

"How long have I been out?"

"Two days."

She nodded and stared into the fire.

"Hungry?"

She only shrugged.

"Well, you're awake. I fixed your leg as best as I could and drained the bad blood from your hand. I may not have gotten it all, if not, the blood poisoning should be stopped long enough for you to get out. I injected you with the packs of plasma so I believe that should make up for a lot of the blood you lost...I'll head out now."

She said nothing but continued to stare into the flames.

He angrily threw his canteen to the ground and stood, "You can have my water. I'm going to find Thresh."

So he was angry about Clove's death.

But facing Thresh meant certain death for Cato.

He wasn't going for the sole purpose to avenge Clove, he was going to end his time in the Arena since it was obvious that he had nothing worth fighting for.

He stalked off and was greeted by a monsoon that began to soak him through to the bone.

The rain fell into his crystal blue eyes and his icy blonde hair fell damply across his forehead.

Cato tightened his hands into fists staring up at the cloudy night, "I'm sorry dad, but I'm not leaving without her."

Hydra sat motionless as tiny tears streaked down her face; she couldn't find her voice, and if she didn't, she'd lose the only thing she had left in here.

The only thing that really mattered anymore.

She'd already lost Arlen and Wiley, but if she lost Cato, she'd lose it for sure and go on as the second Annie Cresta to have her mind destroyed by these games.

"Cato!" her voice was raspy but he froze.

"CATO!" Hydra's voice grew in strength as she shouted his name over and over.

He ran back to her as fast as he could and fell to the ground, pulling her to him and holding her close as she cried and begged him not to leave.

Her mental state was so fragile he barely recognized the once strong Hydra Inna.

"I'm not going anywhere..." he murmured softly.

He kissed her feverishly and was lost as her warm lips hungrily sought his own.

* * *

**Katniss POV**

Katniss began to dish two small servings of the lamb stew that Haymitch sent earlier when the anthem began to play.

Peeta looked through a crack in the rocks and stared at the sky, seeing if there were any casualties that day.

"There won't be anything to see tonight, nothing's happened or we would've heard a cannon" Katniss firmly stated as she began to shovel the stew into her mouth.

"Katniss..."

"What? Should we split another roll, too?"

Peeta was quiet for a moment, "Katniss..."

"I'm going to split one. But I'll save the cheese for tomorrow."

"Thresh is dead."

A pang of sadness filled Katniss as she looked away, "He can't be."

"They must have fired the cannon during the thunder and we missed it."

"Are you sure? I mean, it's pouring buckets out there. I don't know how you can see anything."

She pushed him aside and stared out, her eyes immediately falling as she caught a brief glimpse of Thresh's picture out in the rain.

One less tribute to face, but it was still another friend gone.

"You all right?"

Katniss merely shrugged and hugged her arms against herself.

"It's just...if we didn't win...I wanted Thresh to. Because he let me go. And because of Rue."

"Yeah I know."

"At least Hydra isn't dead yet..."

The two sat in silence as they remembered the cannon booming and hearing the agonized screams of Hydra somewhere far off.

"So who is left?" Peeta questioned.

"Us, obviously, Cato is with Hydra and Foxface is somewhere out there."

"I wonder how Foxface is making out."

"Oh she's fine, probably be easy to catch the other two than her."

"Maybe they'll catch each other and we can just go home."

They both grew quiet again as they thought of Hydra dying in one last bloody battle.

But she and Cato had more experience with weapons than Foxface and could easily eliminate her when they wanted.

That would leave the four of them.

"Do you think you could kill Hydra or Cato?"

"Cato yea. Hydra...I don't know."

It was the hardest thing she'd ever have to do.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

The afternoon sun is warm and inviting as Cato and I pack up our tiny camp.

He's been hunting for the past couple of days and we have more than enough food to outlive the others.

Five of us left.

I feel weak but push the feeling aside and stand, "Ready?"

"Ready."

We've been walking for a few hours with Cato propping me up when the sound of a cannon shatters the afternoon silence.

We stop and look up, "I wonder who it was?"

"Who knows...hopefully Lover Boy, or Fire Girl."

I stay silent and then shrug, "I hope it's District Five."

"You really like those two don't you?"

"Damn right I do. Katniss has helped me since the beginning and Peeta stood up to you for me."

He snorts, "I could have killed you both that day."

I roll my eyes, "I'm sure you would've."

"Never know."

That night, we camp beneath a large grove of weeping willows and I lie there, my thoughts constantly drifting back to my conversation with Arlen on the beach.

The anthem begins to play and the dark night sky lights up with the Capitol's seal.

Foxface's face shines in the sky and give a smile of relief while Cato angrily huffs, "Damn."

"I told you it would be her."

We both lie in silence for a while until Cato speaks up, "What's District Four like?"

"Bright, sunny, always full of life. The air smells like the ocean and we go out fishing everyday to fill our quotas."

"I see...that sounds nice."

"It was, very nice."

"Tell me about your family."

I am astonished, he seems genuinely interested.

"There's me, my mother and my father. Arlen got his looks from my mom, I look more like my dad. No siblings though...anymore."

"Hmm."

"What about you? What's your family like?"

"My dad is one of the lead peacekeepers of District Two. He was a miner before that. My mom is dead. No siblings."

"What happened to your mother?"

He lies there for a moment before starting, "Back when my father was a miner, my mother was a nurse in the district medical center. She'd always make trips out to the mines to fix tiny injuries, take food to the miners, things like that...one day, she went out even though there had been warnings of possible rockslides. Dad told her to stay home but my mom was always stubborn and wouldn't let an injury go untreated. When she was leaving, there was a blast in the tunnels and she was crushed by a bunch of falling boulders."

I suddenly feel an air of anguish as he quietly continues, "I get all of my looks from her...I reminded him of her everyday and he couldn't stand it so he sent me to a training school on the other side of District Two. I thought he was angry with me so I trained as hard as I could to make him proud. He said he wouldn't be happy until I won the games and came home with the blood of at least seven tributes on my hands."

I roll over but he turns away and curls up beneath the tiny blanket, "I'm sorry Cato..."

I am met with silence and I scoot away, a void of cold air rushing between us.

The next morning I awake from a nightmare to the sound of Wiley screaming my name, "Wiley? Wiley!"

Cato jerks awake and I jump to my feet, running and hobbling towards the sound of his voice when my brother's joins his, my head is spinning in a million different directions.

They're both dead.

But it's them, their voices, calling to me.

I am suddenly back on the sandy beach, staring up at the screen above me, watching as my brother reaches for me and slowly slips away.

"Hydra I don't want to die!"

I feel what's left of my mental strength slipping away.

I can't find them but they're so close.

"ARLEN! WILEY!"

"Hydra help!" Wiley's tiny voice pierces the air.

"Hydra stop!"

It's Cato and he reaches for me, "No! Let me go!"

I elbow him in the nose and blood begins to gush from his nostrils, "STOP!"

I catch a glimpse of Arlen's white blonde hair disappearing into the trees just in front of me and I break into the clearing when he turns and looks at me, flashing a small smile when I find myself caught in an aqua beam of light.

It holds me there and Cato stops just short of the light and stares in horror as the bandage vaporizes revealing the large hole in my hand that is suddenly turning black and a spider web of black veins begins to crawl up my arm.

He screams and pounds on the invisible wall that separates us and I weakly reach for him.

The Capitol has found a way to destroy the second Inna.

Crane must be proud.

My skin begins to bruise and I shiver as an ice cold chill runs down my spine.

I'm scared.

More scared than I've ever been in my life.

My breathing becomes shallow and it's a fight for each breath as my heart races and leaps a thousand miles an hour.

The beam releases me and I fall to the ground trying to speak but my lips can form no words as my lungs burn for oxygen.

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

Annie screamed in terror as she watched Hydra struggle for air, "Finnick! It's Hydra!"

He rushed to the television and threw his hands in the air, "No, NO!"

Haymitch burst into the room and silenced Finnick by taking him into a surprisingly tight death grip and cutting his hair supply off, "Shut up or they'll come up here trying to figure out what's wrong, you'll ruin everything!"

"She's dying," Finnick seethed.

"Just wait," Haymitch growled.

Annie was scared as she rocked back and forth singing, "Swim, swim, swim for your life Annie."

Cato was cradling Hydra to his chest when the sound of a hovercraft began to near their area.

"Just watch."

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

Cato shouts and grabs fistfuls of my hair, trying to get me to speak, "Say something Hydra damnit! Say something!"

I try but nothing comes out.

I feel feverish and everything around me begins to blur, "I-Cato..."

"Don't you dare leave me Hydra Inna, don't you dare. I've given up way too much for you to let you die now."

The drone of a hovercraft nears and he scrambles to pull me underneath a bush but he stops when a bright light catches me, paralyzing my entire body until my heart nearly stops.

I can't move anything.

My eyes are frozen open and I stare helplessly as a giant metal claw lowers towards me, "SHE'S NOT DEAD!"

Cato tries to push the giant claw away but is sent flying by a forcefield that surrounds it.

The claw closes around me and begins to pull me up towards the dark hull of the giant vehicle.

A cannon booms in the distance signaling my death and my mind races; I'm not dead.

What the hell is going on?

The claw pulls me into pitch black and I am released as soon as the door closes; a hand touches me and I begin to thrash.

The blood poisoning has silenced my ability to speak and I claw at the faces above me.

"Hydra, Hydra calm down!"

I instantly recognize the deep voice: Moana.

I reach in the direction of his voice and my pale hands are covered with his large, bronze ones.

A man speaks into thin air, "We have her."

There is static but then a woman's voice comes through, it is steely and harsh, "Status?"

"Blood poisoning, she can't speak."

"Give her what you can and disable the tracker, what about the boy?"

A screen lowers in front of the blackened window and I watch in horror as muttations burst out of the trees and make a beeline for Cato.

I instantly think of Arlen.

I begin to bang on the floor and point at the screen, "Hold her down!"

Moana's strong arms hold me to the floor like a bug and a sharp pain stabs the inside of my elbow.

Within a moment I find the strength and air to scream and I do, "Cato, run!"

He can't hear me but he reaches into the pack and pulls out a full suit of a lightweight body armor and quickly pulls it on in the cover of the trees.

I watch as the first mutt bites at him and immediately recognize it.

The wolf like creature has red, curly fur and human-like bright blue eyes: Just like Wiley.

I see an aqua collar that surrounds its neck adorned with shark's teeth, the number _4 _glows in the sunlight.

It is him.

Another jumps behind him and bares it's teeth at Cato, gaining on him, it's fur is straight and jet black with amber eyes and a violet and orange collar that reads _8._

Nathaniel.

The sickness of it all hits me and I feel nauseous as I continue to shout at Cato to run.

Arlen's voice comes rushing through my mind, "He didn't kill them, Snow did. It's the Capitol's doing."

"Sedate her!" The woman's voice orders, "She'll come through over Panem's radios and it'll put an end to the whole thing."

The man injects me with yet another liquid and I begin to feel woozy as Moana's electric blue eyes swim into view, "Stay with me Hydra."

The last thing I hear before I am out is the woman's voice stating, "We need them both. Get the boy, now."

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

Katniss and Peeta jumped up at the sound of the screeching alarms of the mocking-jays.

They had both heard the boom of the cannon and were debating on who was dead and who killed who.

Peeta held out his knife and Katniss loaded her bow, ready to shoot when Cato came crashing out of the dense forest.

"Hydra's dead," Katniss breathed in disbelief.

Peeta shouted with rage, "You killed her, how could you!"

Cato ignored him and continued sprinting towards them.

They both noticed that his hands were empty of weapons which took them both aback.

"He's got some kind of body armor!"

Katniss and Peeta braced themselves for the attack but Cato ran right past both of them, not bothering to slow down.

He was panting and sweat poured down his purple face; he was running from something.

Katniss frantically looked around when she shouted as the first mutt jumped out of the forest.

Another half dozen joined the first and she and Peeta both turned to run.

The wolf like creatures landed easily on their hind legs and had paws and legs that moved like wrists and hands as the first motioned the others forward.

Katniss stared in realization as the blonde wolf reached her, glowering at her with it's bright green eyes; it was Glimmer.

Her sparkly collar shimmered with diamonds and the number _1. _

Cato was pulled off by the wolves whose collars read _4, 8 _and _2, _his screams were terrifying as they tore at him, piercing the armor with their razor sharp claws and knife like teeth.

Katniss could only imagine poor Hydra hobbling along and finally being left by Cato for dead.

She was probably torn to pieces and Katniss was shaken from her thoughts as Peeta shouted at her for help, the wolves that were on Cato turned away from him as the Glimmer wolf howled in their direction.

Katniss heard the boom of a cannon and then the drone of a hovercraft and watched as it dropped a metal claw over Cato and lifted his bleeding and lifeless body into its dark hull.

She couldn't believe it...the games were over.

Nothing happened though, no announcements whatsoever.

The mutts continued to assault the horn and she realized they were going to make them survive the night.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato screamed at the pain that burned through his bleeding flesh as the paralysis wore off from the beam of light.

The blood loss was all ready substantial but whoever it was with him in the dark hovercraft was injecting him with vials of the crimson liquid.

They began pouring a peroxide that bubbled on his skin and exposed entrails; the body armor had been useless against the giant mutts.

"Let me die!" He shouted, trying to push the arms away.

A small voice whispered his name and he turned his head to see Hydra staring at him, her pale lips formed his name as she reached for him.

He scrambled to get off of the table that he was lying on but they continued to hold him down and wipe at his critical wounds.

"Cato..." she murmured again before drifting off.

"Hydra!" he half yelled and half cried.

The pain was immense and he hurt so badly.

One of the hands buried a knife beneath his skin and tore out the tracker, smashing it to pieces before they injected him with a sedative that made the edges of his vision go black.

"We have them both."

"Good, now get out of there."

* * *

_**Review, review! Hope you loved it!**_

_**A/N: This is NOT the end kids.  
**_


	16. Destroyed Families and Foreign Lands

_**This chapter took a lot of thought and redoing, I think I had four different versions. GAH. Most important chapter to date. Hope you all enjoy it and thanks for being such awesome readers!**_

_****__**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games or the characters from said books, Suzanne Collins does. Jealous. But I do own my own characters, locations and plot lines.**_

_**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

**Finnick's POV**

The silver bullet of a train sped away, leaving Finnick and Annie at the platform, silent and broken hearted.

Sounds of the ocean waves and a lone gull floated to them on the salty breeze, welcoming them home.

Finnick thought back to his conversation with Haymitch, "She'll be safe. I don't know how long it will be before you can see or talk to her again but hopefully it will be soon."

"Thanks...congratulations on another victory."

Haymitch was honestly sad and he could see that, "I am very sorry Finnick. I know you had high hopes for both of them."

Annie pulled on his hand shaking him from his reveries, "Come on Finny, let's go talk to them."

The first stop was the Ur household.

All of District Four was closed down, no one was out tonight in the streets and the windows were blackened.

They would have to decorate for the Victory tour, but right now, that was far from everyone's minds.

They made their way to the tiny fishing villages in the western part of the district and found the small bungalow that the Ur's inhabited.

Finnick cleared his throat and took a deep breath, reaching up, he gave a firm knock on the door.

A little boy opened the door and looked up at Finnick with big, sky blue eyes.

He looked exactly like Wiley and Finnick had to swallow the lump in his throat to speak, "Is your mother and father here?"

"Yea...hold on..."

A tiny, red-headed woman and a tall, burly red-headed man stepped to the door and both stared at him with a look of hurt and deep melancholy.

They stepped out onto the cool sand and shut the door behind them, shielding the younger brothers inside.

"Mr. and Mrs. Ur...I know that nothing I can say will ever make up for your loss...Wiley was strong and so close...I am truly sorry that I could not convince the Capitol to give them more at the Feast."

Mrs. Ur teared up, "Thank you for training him and doing what you could...my baby did what he knew was best."

Mr. Ur stuck his hand out and Finnick took it shaking it firmly, "Thank you for everything Odair."

"At least we have Jonah and Jensen, the poor Inna's..."

Mrs. Ur finally released her tears and turned away, "I'm sorry, excuse me Finnick. Thank you for stopping by."

Jonah and Jensen both ran to the door, pushing each other aside, "Finnick? When is Wiley coming home?"

"I miss him!"

Mr. Ur pushed them both back through the door, "Inside boys. Go help your mother with dinner."

"Yes sir."

"Yes father."

Finnick stared at him with a questioning look, "We didn't let them watch the games this year, we couldn't let them see their brother die."

"I see...I'm sorry, again."

Mr. Ur gave him a final nod and closed the door.

Annie stood by and waited as Finnick walked back to her, "Come on, we have to go to the Inna's now."

They reached the fishing villages of the Eastern side of the district, the more high-end fishing boats glimmered under the moonlight and the houses rose on stilts above the ocean water.

Finnick and Annie trudged over the rope bridge and knocked on the door of the home, waiting anxiously for them to answer.

The windows were all covered in black and a single candle illuminated a stained-glass crescent moon in the upper window.

Mrs. Inna slowly opened the door, peering through the crack she saw that it was Finnick and threw it open.

The entire house was dark; she looked like she hadn't slept in days and her sky blue eyes looked drained of color.

"I'm so sor-"

He was interrupted as she staggered to the planks, body racked with sobs.

Finnick dropped next to her and held her hands tightly.

"Where's your husband?"

"He died the day that she was killed...heart attack..." she coughed out through the muffled cries.

Annie gasped and Finnick closed his eyes realizing that Brielle Inna was alone and without a family.

The Inna's had once been the pride of the district and now they were dust in the wind.

He wished that he could tell her that Hydra was alive out there, but he couldn't yet.

The Capitol had gone too far.

Annie slipped her arms around the woman's waist and they cried together.

Finnick watched as every top window in the village began to light up, a series of stained glass crescent moons filled the night with a brilliant and colorful light.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

**One.**

"SHE NEEDS BLOOD NOW!"

**Two.**

"WE'RE LOSING THEM!"

**Three.**

"THE POISONING IS KILLING HER!"

**Four.**

"HIS LIVER IS RIPPED TO SHREDS!"

**Five.**

The sound of a sickening crack fills the air like lightning and I scream at the blinding pain.

"The bone is splintered, we have to fill it with something."

"Titanium alloy. Get us as much as you can find!"

"Get him to the operating room now!"

I keep fading in and out and all I see are Moana's electric blue eyes staring down at me, "Stay with me Hydra! Stay with me!"

"CATO!"

There's only one person I want to see right now.

"CATO!"

Arlen's voice fills my head, "Hydra...Hydra...wake up baby sister...Come on...don't die. You can't leave mom and dad...Hydra..." his voice whispers like the breeze through the palm trees.

The nightmares plague me and I am constantly being drugged to stop the screaming.

I wake up to the steady beeping of a heart monitor, with every beat, I realize that I am alive, and the canopy of trees that was the Arena is gone and I am in a different place.

The static of a radio picks up and I crane my neck to hear more, "She's awake."

"I'll be right down."

A man in a white uniform steps behind the curtain and I jump, "Who are you! Where am I? Where's Cato!"

I am in a frenzy as I jump off of the bed, ripping the IV from my arm and stumbling around the white room calling out his name, "CATO!"

Blood oozes from the loss of the needle and I slip in the growing puddle.

The nurses make a run for me and I throw a punch at one with my left hand, nearly knocking her out; where there was once a disabling pain there is now nothing.

A nurse tells me to calm down as he takes me down and a voice that is as cold as steel greets me.

"Ms. Inna."

I struggle against the man and stand up, pushing him off and glaring, "Don't touch me."

"Let her go."

The woman walks closer and I take a long, steady look, trying to figure out just who she is.

She is tall, I'd say about early 50's with a curtain of shoulder length grey hair and eyes that are the color of a dreary, winter sky.

She reaches over to shake my hand and I flinch at the touch of her cold skin, "Who are you?"

"I am Alma Coin. Welcome home."

Instantly, I don't like her.

There is no warmth in any aspect of her being and I think of getting out of here, wherever here is.

I just have to find Cato.

"Home? This isn't home. Where am I! Tell me now! Let me go home!"

"You are in District 13. It is not possible for you to return to District Four at this time."

I am speechless.

District 13 was destroyed decades ago in a bombing raid by the Capitol.

"You're lying."

"I never lie Ms. Inna."

"District 13 was obliterated by the Capitol."

"The surface of our district was, but we rebuilt ourselves beneath the ground and we have been flourishing for quite some time. We are fully capable of nuclear war."

I hold up my hand, "I punched her. I didn't feel a thing. What did you do to me?"

"You were severely injured. We had to re-break your leg and set it the correct way. We used a light weight titanium alloy to encase the bones and we had to reconstruct the ligaments and tendons of your hand. Also encased in the same alloy."

I run my fingers along my lower leg and gasp at the smoothness of my new bones.

She gently unwraps my hand and I stare at the silver hole, "We will spray it with synthetic skin when it has properly healed and the metal has taken to your body."

"Why are you doing this for me?"

She folds her hands behind her back and begins, "We need leaders for our revolution. Leaders who will command the attention of others and gain their respect by any means necessary."

"Revolution?"

"The Revolution against the Capitol."

"You should have chosen Katniss and Peeta, the people like them more."

"Ms. Everdeen has been dubbed the Mocking-jay. She will be the face of the revolution, after how she has cheated death and played the Capitol, we believe that will be the best position for her. Mr. Mellark as well."

"How did she play the Capitol?"

"You will be briefed on recent happenings later."

"How long has it been since you picked me up?"

"Two weeks. The blood poisoning was extensive and it took you a while to completely overcome it."

"You still haven't answered my question, why am I here?"

"The death of you and your brother has captured the hearts of people everywhere. District Four is one of the key districts for our cause and also one of the biggest supporters of the Capitol. We need a leader that will be able to persuade them to join the Rebellion."

"The peacekeepers in District Four will be ruthless. The deaths will be countless if rebellion breaks out."

"Sacrifices must be made during times of war."

I sit there for a moment when I ask the most important question of all, "Where is Cato?"

"He is in intensive care. The muttations damaged several of his vital organs and we had to reconstruct much of his upper body. He lost a lot of blood as well, its been up and down with him but he is in stable condition now."

"I want to see him. Now."

Coin nods and looks at the nurse who I punched, she now has a large bruise running down the length of her jaw, "Take her to the ICU."

"Yes ma'am. This way," the woman glares at me but I throw her an icy stare and she immediately backs away.

We pass through a few more hospital rooms before we finally enter another that is dimly lit, "He's over there."

She leaves me alone and I listen again to the beep beep of a heart monitor, "Cato?"

I only whisper, afraid to disturb the silence that hangs over the room.

I walk up to the bed and my heart sinks, he looks like a torn up mess.

His face is bruised badly but it is his chest that scares me the worst, I can see where the muttations ripped him apart and stare at the tiny strips of skin that barely cover the torn muscles.

They have sewn up what they can and the rest is a canvas of different vital organs put together in a strategic manner from some poor soul who suffered from an early death.

"We will also be doing the same for Cato. As soon as the new organs have healed, we will incase these organs with the titanium alloy."

I nod and bend down, gently kissing his beautiful lips, "I love you...come back to me...," I whisper.

A severe pain shoots up my leg and I collapse to the linoleum floor, crying out, "Your body is adjusting to the metal. It is a painful process, but it should only last for a couple more weeks."

I am escorted back to my bed where for two more weeks, they tuck me in tightly and put me out, leaving me to my nightmares of the Arena and the deaths of friends.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato awoke to the buzzing of a tiny yellow light in the corner of the darkened room.

What was this place?

He looked down to the mound of white bandages that were wrapped around his chest and torso, he didn't remember anything and strained to recall what had happened.

He reached through a hole in the bandages and cringed when his finger touched a cold metal like substance.

What had they done to him?

Cato looked around and sat up, pushing the IV cart along and walking through the tiny corridors between rooms.

Every bed was empty except for the one at the end of the larger room, she lay there, thrashing around, crying out for Wiley.

He moved slowly towards her, catching her face in his hands as soon as he reached her bedside.

Hydra sucked in air and her eyes opened wide, shouting one last time when she saw his eyes.

"Cato?" she whispered.

He stroked the white scar on her cheek and she nearly flew out of the bed, knocking in to him, her arms wrapping around his neck.

Cato grasped her and held her tightly, unwilling to let her go when the alarm went off as her heartbeat began to quicken.

The nurses rushed into the room, trying to pry them apart but Cato fought them off, screaming at them to stay away from her.

President Coin swooped into the room like a great grey eagle and her voice rose above the clatter, "Let them be!"

The nurses stepped back, giving the raging Cato some room as Hydra continued to cling to him, "Who are you?" he growled.

"Alma Coin, President of District 13."

He froze and stared at her, slack jawed, "Can you repeat that please?"

"You are in District 13. If you would both come with me, we will begin your debriefing. It is time for you to know what plans we have."

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

I am given a simple gray jumpsuit to dress in, I have noticed that the only colors people wear here are grey, black or white.

It is such a colorless and depressing world these people live in.

I slowly crutch down the hallway and Cato sits there waiting for me on a lonely bench against the wall.

As soon as he sees me, he jumps up and immediately takes my free hand, lacing his fingers with mine and pulling me protectively to his side.

We follow President Coin, people move aside and stare, whispering among themselves, "That's Hydra Inna, remember her brother?"

"Oh yea, wasn't it that Arlen kid?"

"I'm pretty sure."

"There's bloody, brutal Cato."

"He's monstrous..."

"Did you see how many tributes he murdered?"

So they have been watching the games here.

I am angered at this, how could they sit there and watch the rest of the districts give their children up when their own are safe and sound and no where near the bloody brutality of the Capitol's little circus?

We sit at a small round table in a large room, the smell of hot coffee wafts around my nose.

I can't take it.

I pound my fist in the table and it leaves a dent, "Why didn't you organize a rebellion earlier? It is quite clear that you have been watching the games for a while and yet you've sat by and done nothing!"

Coin is calm as she turns to me, "We did not have the power or resources we needed to begin one."

Cato is silent as he sits there, "Why are we here?"

"District Two is vital to our cause just as much as District Four is. The only problem is, both are very loyal to the Capitol and we need you to lead the rebellions in your districts."

"Why exactly do we need to rebel? The Capitol treats us fairly, it's YOUR district's fault in the first place."

"The Capitol may treat your districts fairly, but while you are all well fed and groomed, the other districts starve and face multiple deaths everyday. President Snow's power has become too great and it is time to put a stop to his reign."

"Who will be in charge of this new world after the Capitol falls?" I question, certain of the answer.

"I will, of course."

She's just as power hungry as Snow is.

"I won't lead my district into a blood bath. There's been far too much blood spilled by the Capitol already and I won't put my people through worse."

"If you don't, the Hunger Games will continue and more children will die."

"District Two children find it an honor to fight in the games," Cato states.

"As we are aware, but again, none of the other districts do. It is only districts One, Two and Four who find glory in them. The rest of the districts combined can overpower the three of you easily. District One is not all powerful as it would seem. They are as clueless as the Capitol citizens are."

She looks to me, "Fight for us Ms. Inna, and I promise you the vengeance you want for your brother's death. I have the name of the head Gamemaker who created the Arena and events in your brother's games. I can hand him to you on a silver platter if you cooperate."

Cato pulls my face to the side to look at him, "District Four will be slaughtered by the Capitol. I live in a place that breeds peacekeepers and fighters who are fiercely loyal to Snow. It's a battle you can't win. My father and the others will tear you apart."

His words go in one ear and out the other, I stand and lean over the table, staring into Coin's eyes, "Give him to me, and I'll bring District Four into your revolution with no problems."

This is what I've been waiting for.

The opportunity to avenge Arlen has been handed to me freely and I will take it.

Coin's voice is threatening when she turns to Cato,"Perfect. As for you Mr. Mica, make up your mind soon, or District Two will be the first we flatten. Do not forget, we have nuclear power. We brought you out of that Arena with who you wanted; I'd say you owe us a favor."

Cato's hand tightens painfully around mine, "Fine. I'll do it," he says through gritted teeth.

"Good. We will be training you separately from the rest of the of our army. You will each be trained in hand-to-hand combat skills-"

"We know how to do all of that. We don't need your help," Cato's eyes are full of anger as he glares at her.

"You've only been trained to use one weapon Mr. Mica, both of you have, we must increase your versatility if you are to lead your own combat unit. You have the rest of today off, but you begin your work tomorrow. Dismissed."

We both leave in silence.

In only a matter of weeks we have been taken from the bloody battle ground of the Hunger Games and dropped into the middle of an impending war.

Moana meets me in the hallway and apologizes, "I'm sorry Cato, but I need to steal Hydra for an hour."

Cato only nods and the escort takes him to his new assigned compartment.

"What's going on Moana? How are we here and why?"

"They told me about the plan after your first week in the Arena. Haymitch was in contact with Coin from the beginning. After your run-in with Cato and Clove he persuaded Finnick that he could keep you alive if Finnick gave you to them for the war effort. Finnick wanted you alive...we couldn't tell you."

"And Wiley?"

"Wiley was never meant to survive. His death was imperative. This revolution rests on your and others' hate for the Capitol. The more you lose, the angrier you are and the more you will do to help Coin and District 13 win this new revolution."

"Bastards," I hiss, "there was only enough for one of us on purpose...I can't believe it."

"I was brought here to create the Phantom of District Four. Sea goddess come back to life to lead her district's people to freedom from the tyrant of Panem. Cinna has been working on a wardrobe for Katniss since he was informed of this plan as well. She will be the Mocking-jay, the face of District 13's revolution and the symbol of the Capitol's fall."

"When will they bring her here?"

"No telling."

He sits down and begins to sketch, "I'm sorry you were dragged into this...I have a feeling that things will only get worse."

* * *

I lie there, curled up next to Cato, watching the end of the Hunger Games that we missed while we were being operated on and repaired.

They have sprayed us with synthetic skin and we are good as new; physically that is.

Coin won't let them cover the bruises and scars on our faces and bodies though, they are 'crucial' to our appearance in front of people when it is time to begin our roles.

Katniss and Peeta survived the night but Peeta was badly injured by one of the wolves and his calf was bleeding and a massive chunk was missing.

By morning, the mutts retreated back to the forest and a look of relief crossed the District 12 tributes' faces.

Claudius Templesmith's voice rang out over the Arena; they had revoked the new rule that two tributes could win the Hunger Games leaving Katniss and Peeta in despair.

At the last minute, they agreed on suicide and placed the poisonous berries in their mouths, causing Templesmith's voice to call out again urgently; they had both won, there was no need for them both to die.

I can't help but think that the Capitol's favoritism of Career tributes played a part in the revocation of the rule; they had wanted Cato and I to win.

I am glad that Katniss and Peeta are going home though, they deserve it.

If only they knew what was in store for them within the next year.

We watch the Victory tour and I begin to cry quietly as they pass through District Four.

The people's eyes are glazed and full of sadness, my mother stands there by herself, she looks as if she hasn't slept in weeks.

Where is my father?

Wiley's tiny family stands there and his little brothers sob loudly as soon as they find out that their big brother isn't coming home.

Katniss and Peeta give speeches about Wiley and I, praising our bravery and the bond that formed between us.

There is something peculiar though.

Every woman and girl in the crowd wears a crescent pendant like the one that Naida gave me and every man and boy wears a cuff like Wiley's.

When Katniss and Peeta begin to leave, my people kiss their palms and place them over their hearts in unison.

Finnick stands there with eyes that are unreadable.

Has he already told the people of District Four about the revolution and they are beginning to prepare by showing signs of unity and strength?

I miss Finnick, I miss everyone.

I want to go home.

But I also want vengeance for Arlen.

Cato has been silent ever since they passed through District Two.

His father never showed to honor him or listen to the speeches made about he and Clove.

"I'm sorry Cato," I murmur.

He shuts the screen off and we are left in total darkness.

"It doesn't matter, I didn't expect him to be after how much I've shamed him," his voice is cold and emotionless.

I reach up and kiss him; he eagerly returns the gesture.

It is the first kiss I've shared with him that no one watches and shares.

He is intense but gentle and we lose ourselves to each other.

I pull his shirt over his head and for the first time, I am able to enjoy the beauty of his muscled chest.

The scars bring tears to my eyes but he wipes them away and gently pulls my tank off.

His skin is warm against mine and I feel as if I am floating out to sea on a boat that will never return to shore.

This is a foreign land and I want to travel it entirely.

"I knew I'd have you Hydra..." he whispers into the darkness.

He rolls me beneath him and I melt into his powerful kisses.

No one will ever understand the things we've been through.

No one will ever have to bear the pain that we do.

I have him and he has me; and that is all that there will ever be.

* * *

_**REVIEW, REVIEW! Your reviews are so awesome :) Thanks all! **_


	17. The Beginnings of Revolution

_**Hey everyone! So this one took me a couple of days to write because this is not canon and completely my own, except for the end scene. This is the final chapter of ~The Ebb and Flow of Love and Vengeance~ but it is not the final chapter for Hydra and Cato. I plan on writing a sequel to this asap that will take place during Catching Fire and Mockingjay. Thank you to all of my amazing readers who have subscribed, author alerted, favorited and reviewed this story! I had a lot of fun writing it and am looking forward to the next one. :)**_

_****__****__****__****__****__**Disclaimer: **__** I do not own The Hunger Games or the plot line or characters, they belong to Suzanne Collins. Some of the lines in the following chapter are hers as well, obviously. My characters and part of the plot line are obviously mine. So yes, thank god for Suzanne Collins and her brilliance.**_

_****__****__****__****__****__****__**Read on! ~xoxx, Carolyn  
**_

* * *

Each night I wake, screaming and crying from the nightmares I have about the Arena.

I endure Wiley's death every time I try to sleep; I feel as if I'll never sleep again without seeing his face.

Nathaniel cries out for me as he dies after saving my life.

Cato is there to comfort me, holding me tightly and kissing me with those warm kisses I crave so deeply, whispering words of love against my ears in the black of night.

I, sometimes, have to awaken him from his own nightmares.

He's always screaming at Clove for something or his father is after him.

Moana was right.

Life isn't the same anymore and I figure that it will change far more in the time to come.

For two months, Cato and I are trained for seven hours a day with different trainers who are skilled in the arts of all weapons and types of special defense.

I learn how to use the sais with even more proficiency than before, and they spend the most time with me on this weapon.

I've been chosen to lead a special squad of assassins so silence and sly is key to my skill; the sais are my weapon of choice.

Cato has been assigned his combat unit which will be used to storm and take key locations quickly.

His brutality makes him the perfect candidate for the job and they know that he will cut down everyone and anyone in his way to achieve his objective.

I learn how to throw knives which brings along the unpleasant memories of my time in the Arena with Clove.

We learn how to use the trident, nets, the bow, snares, traps and a weapon that was never used in the Arena; it is a weapon that has always been reserved for the peacekeepers and soldiers of the Capitol: the gun.

It takes a while for me to become used to the powerful kick, I have the bruises on my shoulders to prove it.

Cato uses the weapon with great skill having used one before courtesy of his father.

On the rainiest days, he and I run outside under the watchful eyes of the guards and the curious stares of the other soldiers working on the obstacle course in the distance.

For the most part we are very cold and apprehensive when it comes to the others that surround us.

We keep to ourselves.

No one ever dares to cross our path without being pulverized by Cato.

When we walk through the corridors, it is as if we have the power to part the seas; the citizens of District 13 move to the side and lower their eyes as we pass.

It is strange why they fear us so, but I always figure it is because they know what we are capable of, having watched us in the Hunger Games.

The scars on our bodies are proof that we've been in many a scuffle and aren't afraid to fight more.

Everyday our schedule is tattooed on our forearms and everyday it's the same exact thing.

Breakfast - 7 a.m.

Training for three hours.

Lunch. - 12 p.m.

Training for two hours.

Dinner. - 6 p.m.

Training for two hours.

They also have us put through psychological training to strengthen our minds and allow us to be less susceptible to the Capitol's mind games.

I am subjected to a forest where the cries and screams for help of my brother and Wiley ring from every direction and I must ignore these cries and go on to complete the mission.

After a while, the screams become nothing more than a drone in my ears and I am able to ignore the pleas with some ease.

Cato is subjected to a mine where his mother's muffled cries cry to him and his father's insults are hurled at him from every corner.

Eventually he learns to ignore them and complete his missions, but the pain it causes him is great and I try to make it all go away as best as I can.

It's torture.

When we have free time, we usually just stay in our compartment or we are in the strategy room trying to help come up with ways to strike rebellion in the other districts.

I hate the life we live here.

It's boring and uneventful.

I want to go home.

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato awoke the next morning to a loud knock on the compartment door.

"Who is it?"

"President Coin needs to see you and Soldier Inna in the strategy room, now."

"Alright, we'll be there in a few minutes."

He gently nudged Hydra awake, "Come on sea goddess, wake up."

She stretched and rolled over staring at the clock that read _600 a.m. _in glowing red numbers.

"Why?"

"Coins needs us."

"This early?"

"Apparently."

He pulled on his jumpsuit and she did the same, pulling her hair into a messy ponytail before trudging out of the compartment.

The corridors were still dark and there was not a soul roaming around; it was eerie, as always.

The two entered the white room where President Coin sat at the head of the large table, her hands folded around a white cup of steaming hot coffee.

Cato poured himself a glass and Hydra did the same, the bedraggled looking soldiers looked like zombies as they sat there waiting for Coin to start.

"As you well know, District Eight has been at a boiling point ever since the games ended and we feel as if the situation is about to blow."

"And that concerns us why?"

"I would like to send you both in there, quietly of course, Inna that's where you come in. If there are any peacekeepers that need to be eliminated, you know how to do it best."

"What are we supposed to do?"

"Hydra, due to your relationship with District Eight's tributes, especially the male tribute, before the games, we feel as if they will listen to you far more than any of us. We need you to present our cause and let them know that if they fight for the rebellion, then we will help them in any ways that they ask."

Cato's face grew red at the mention of Nathaniel.

He hated the District Eight tribute and how he used to look at Hydra when they were together discussing their strategies for the Arena.

He had thrown a sword clear through Nathaniel and watched as he bled to death beneath the trembling hands of Hydra who could do nothing.

"Shouldn't you send someone else? Hydra should be saved for the big rebellion in her own district, not some stupid, small-scale rebellion in a district she has no connection to."

"That is not for you to decide Soldier Mica. Anyway, we will be sending you along to be her...bodyguard; you seem to have that role down anyway."

"When do we leave?"

"We'd like you to leave today. The faster word spreads, the better."

"All right. Will we be traveling alone?"

"Yes. You two are very efficient on your own and will move quicker and quieter without extra men...we would also like you to go back to District Four Soldier Inna and begin to lay the ground work for the rebellion there as well. You're ready."

Finally, Hydra was going to go home.

"And, after all of this done, I get that Gamemaker's name, correct?"

"That is correct. As promised."

Cato squeezed her hand, "Come on. Let's get out of here. I've needed to stretch my legs for a while."

"Soldier Inna?"

Hydra turned to look at the woman, "Come back to District 13 as soon as you have given your speech to your people. You cannot stay. We will place you back there when the rebellion starts. But for now, we need you here."

She nodded Coin dismissed them.

* * *

**Hydra's POV**

After Cato and I pack, Moana pulls me aside, "We need to get you dressed."

"Thanks Moana, I've got my stuff in my compartment."

"Not those clothes, darling. I've finished with your armor."

"Armor?"

"Well, it's not exactly a suit of armor but it is similar in the fact that it was made from a fabric that should protect you from severe damage by any weapons."

After he is finished with me, I find that I am dressed in a black unitard that shimmers with aqua blue, turquoise and violet swirls that resemble the waves of the ocean.

The fabric is thick and almost feels like the skin of a shark, smooth yet durable.

He gives me knee-high black leather boots, clasps my crescent pendant around my neck and laces Wiley's cuff around my wrist.

My hair is long and cascades down my back just as it did in the parade and my make up is light and neutral but worthy of the sea itself with the ocean blue liner that lines my olive eyes.

"Perfect. You look dazzling."

"Do I really need all of this?"

"Appearances are everything is what they say. Coin ordered me to dress you this way. The rebellion is starting Hydra, this will be your first public appearance."

"I see..."

Tears fill his eyes for a moment and then he wipes them away.

"What's wrong?"

"I wish I could go to District Four with you..."

"Why? They aren't too fond of Capitol people there...harsh but true."

He takes a deep breath and runs a hand through his black hair, "When my sister, Kailauni, and I were children, we were kidnapped from our home in the western fishing village of District Four by a peacekeeper. He sent us to the Capitol where we were placed under the care of a Capitol family. It was part of a program that the government was creating to kidnap district children and bring them to the Capitol so that they could experience what the Capitol had to offer and go home to spread how kind and giving the Capitol was. I was never able to adapt to that lifestyle as well as Kailauni was. When they asked both of us to come here to District 13, she declined. She enjoys the luxuries that she is afforded by President Snow."

His story stuns me, but it all makes sense.

He has so much knowledge about the ocean and the fish that live within it's icy depths.

He also knows everything there is to know about several prominent citizens of District Four.

I reach over and take his large, bronze hand in mine and squeeze it gently, "I'm sure you can go back someday. Maybe after this whole rebellion is over..."

He turns his arm every which way and watches as the bright lights bounce off of the flecks of gold inlaid in his skin, "Perhaps. But enough about that, time to get you moving. Be strong as you were in the Arena, avoid unnecessary dangers and PLEASE keep control of Cato."

"I will. I promise."

He hugs me tightly and then gently releases me.

Cato waits for me in the hall in a costume that looks as if it was carved from stone and is running thick with onyx and other stones.

"Masonry huh? Looks decent."

He frowns, "I thought we were done with all of these stupid costumes."

"Apparently not. We need to make a good public appearance."

"I feel like an idiot. But, apparently it's supposed to be some kind of body armor as well."

"Mine is too. Let's go."

President Coin sets us off and we disappear into the night.

Just as we did in the Arena, we live off of very little sleep as we pass the other districts.

For two days we pass through lands that we've never seen and experience a side of life in Panem we never knew to exist.

First comes District 12.

Cato and I stare up at the large fence that surrounds the perimeter of the District.

It is so sad and decrepit looking with all of the tiny shacks and the thick layer of black coal dust that seems to coat everything in site.

Somewhere out there, Peeta and Katniss live in their Victors' homes enjoying the fruits of the victory at the Hunger Games.

I wonder how they are doing and wish I could see them but I will save that for when the time comes.

District 11 is nothing like what I imagined it would be.

Sweet little Rue never mentioned a thing about the large guard towers that sit an equal distance apart from each other in the far off orchards.

The place looks scary and I wonder how anyone survives in there without living a life that is full of fear.

District 10 passes with numerous cattle lowing in the rolling fields and the bleats of sheep on the farms further off.

District Nine is nothing but waves or grain as far as the eye can see with a few small log cabins here and there.

I've never seen these districts before and I don't realize how lucky I am to have grown up in District Four.

Cato watches in disgust as we pass them, he feels nothing for the poor people who live behind those wretched fences.

Survival of the fittest he tells me.

Finally, we reach District Eight.

The large textile factories begin to rise one by one on the horizon and smoke plumes high in the dusty pink sky.

Night begins to fall and we move closer to the perimeter of the stinking and industrial fume filled district.

"Plan?"

"I'll take out the peacekeepers at the front. Watch my back."

Cato grabs my hand and I turn to look into his beautiful eyes, "Be careful, huh? I don't need you dead. Believe me."

I kiss him warmly and nod, "Of course I'll be careful. Have a little faith."

I leave him in the dark and quietly make my way to the entrance where there are two peacekeepers standing by in white uniforms.

I quietly slip up behind the first and slit his throat, holding the wound as the blood seeps through, careful not to make a scene.

The second peacekeeper turns and whispers into the darkness, "Gabriel?"

He walks closer, his gun trained on the spot where his friend was only a few moments ago.

Swiftly I have him up against the gate, Cato comes up and knocks the gun from his hand and I hold the blade of my sais to his throat, "Open the gate."

"I can't do that. What di-"

"I said open the gate."

I press the blade against his throat even more and he whimpers in defeat, "Ok, ok I'll do it."

He opens the gate and Cato drives a sword through his gut.

We close the entrance behind us and silently make our way to the large, ruby colored justice building that sits at the back of the district square.

The people live in rundown and dirty apartment buildings that line the rocky streets.

Nature is not in abundance here, it is barren and dusty.

We've almost made it when the voice of a small girl breaks the silence causing both of us to jump, "Who are you?"

She's appeared out of nowhere, she can only be about seven or eight, and my heart races as a peacekeeper begins to walk towards us, "Hey! You! Little girl, there's a curfew in place!"

I slip the hood of my jacket from my head and her brown eyes light up in recognition, I hold a finger to my lips and she eagerly nods and does the same.

"Hey! I said get home!"

He comes closer and the little girl backs up against the building, he raises a hand to her and a knife goes whizzing through the air, catching him in the throat.

The man falls and Cato drags him away, the little girl stares up at me with curious eyes, "Aren't you Hydra Inna?"

"I am, yes."

"Didn't you die? Didn't he die?"

I smile and kneel down in front of her, "We're supposed to be. But, keep our secret for us."

She nods and gives a mischievous smile, "Of course...everyone in the district was pulling for you after Nathaniel and Gwin died...Nathaniel really liked you."

I find my eyes watering at the mention of my friend's name and I smile softly, "He was a great friend, I miss him, very much. Now get home and don't tell anyone you saw us, ok?"

"I promise."

She runs off in the direction of one of the apartment buildings and Cato comes up behind me.

"You think she can keep a promise?"

"I'm certain of it."

We make our way up the stairs of the justice building where a meeting of the districts' highest families is taking place.

I can hear muffled voices behind a door, "We have to rebel now!"

"We don't have any way of doing it without causing the deaths of hundreds of innocent people!"

"If we don't get started now, it'll never happen!"

An argument begins to rise and a deep voice rises over the clamor, "Hush or the peacekeepers will break the meeting up."

"Yes sir, sorry sir."

I look to Cato who nods and we both slowly open the doors; the entire room is silent as we make our way in.

They stare at us and eyes open wide in recognition and mouths drop as I walk towards the front of the room.

I clear my throat and begin, "Hello leaders of District Eight. As you know, I am Hydra Inna..."

"Hydra Inna is dead! This has to be a trick of the Capitol!"

A man begins to walk towards me but Cato is immediately in front of me, his swords poised and at the ready, "I wouldn't touch her if I were you," he growls.

"If this isn't a trick of the Capitol, then what is it?"

"We've come from District 13-"

This presents a wave of shouts and cries that erupt across the room and I raise my voice to continue, "We were rescued from the Arena by soldiers of District 13 for the cause of one President Alma Coin. She sent Cato and I here to offer you a proposition."

The man stares up at me with narrow eyes, "And what would that proposition be?"

I suddenly feel ridiculously stupid in the costume that I am dressed in, it's so out of place from the simple cotton that these people are clothed in.

"Join our revolution against the Capitol, and we will provide you with whatever you need to begin your own rebellion here in District Eight."

"District 13 was destroyed by the Capitol."

I hold up my hand and give them a sympathizing look, "Believe me, I know it sounds crazy, I didn't believe it for the first two weeks I spent there. The Capitol merely bombed the surface of the district. After all was said and done and the Capitol promised to leave District 13 alone, they began to rebuild underground."

"What does District 13 have that could persuade the Capitol to leave them be and keep up the facade that it's abandoned?"

"It has an abundance of nuclear power."

The room goes deathly silent.

That low voice rises out of the crowd, "Hydra Inna, you were close with my son during the weeks before the games."

The man emerges from the group of faces and I instantly see a similarity between father and son.

His hair is raven black and his eyes are a deep golden, amber.

His skin has been browned by the sun and lines from laughter crinkle at the corner of his sad eyes.

I swallow the lump in my throat and look at him, "I was, yes. He was a dear friend."

His eyes immediately flick to Cato who is glaring at the man, "And you, Cato of District Two, killed my Nathaniel."

"Yea, I did what I had to in order to get what I wanted."

I can feel the tension between the two and I break it by stepping between them, "May I have a word with you privately, sir?"

Nathaniel's father nods and he escorts me out of the room into the hallway.

"I am sorry for your loss...I still have nightmares about his loss, he saved my life at the bloodbath and I can never repay you for that."

He shakes his head and takes my hand in his, "My son cared for you, everyone saw it, and I believe that he was right in doing so. You are a strong, young woman Hydra. Everyone saw your brother's death and we all thought that you would shrivel away when they called your name, but you didn't."

I can only nod as tears well in my eyes.

"If what you say about District 13 is true, then I will gladly accept the offer but I will only do so for you. Nathaniel would want us to help you, as would Gwin."

"I want vengeance for my brother, for Nathaniel, for Gwin, Wiley, everyone that the Capitol has taken. It is time for Snow and his system to fall."

Mr. Sun, as I find his last name to be, agrees, "I will talk to them and let you know of our decision in the next hour."

"Thank you. I am sorry for Cato's behavior, he...he's just protective."

His eyes grow hard, "Yes. I see that. Excuse me Ms. Inna."

Cato joins me and we wait there in the hall, he is itching to get out, he can feel the hate from everywhere as they stare at him with anger and vengeance in their eyes.

After two hours, Mr. Sun reappears and informs us, "We will accept your proposition. We want everything that we need and we will give you a list of things to help our rebellion."

"Thank you, I will get it back to District 13 after I am finished in District Four."

Cato and I get ready to leave when the people in the hall assemble behind Nathaniel's Father; in unison, they all kiss their palms and place them over their hearts.

"The support and hearts of District Eight go with you Hydra Inna. We have made our decision in order to honor your friendship with our tributes and to obtain vengeance for their deaths."

I make the gesture of District Four as well and bow before we slip away back into the night and head back towards my home.

* * *

**District Four: Two days later**

Cato and I stay hidden during the day and travel by night, passing through Districts Seven, Six, Five and finally reaching Four.

The smell of the ocean fills my nostrils and warm, salty breeze caresses my face.

Cato looks around in wonder at the villages that are illuminated in the moonlight.

The top windows of every home glow with the colorful light of crescent moon stained glass windows; no doubt these are in honor for Wiley and I.

"It's beautiful," Cato whispers in awe.

"I told you."

I am home, even if it is for a short while, I am still home.

He laces his fingers with mine as we pick our way through the villages of the western part of the district.

I know where the peacekeepers are stationed and we easily avoid any confrontation with them.

"I need to find Finnick first, come on."

We reach the eastern fishing villages and I climb a ladder to reach a bungalow that rises from the sand on stilts and sits nested in the palm trees above.

Cato stays in the tall grasses below, keeping watch.

The home is dark but I know that he is here.

I knock on the door and wait for him, tapping my feet on the platform before the door opens wide and he stands there before me like a beautiful god of the sea with his messy bronze hair and bright turquoise eyes.

Before I can say a word, he has me in his arms, squeezing me tightly and I can't help but my wrap my arms around him and do the same, he strokes my hair and nuzzles my ear, "My beautiful girl has finally come back to me."

I grip him and he pulls back, "I'm sorry I couldn't get enough for you and Wiley and I'm sorry I didn't tell you about our plans."

I shake my head as he sits there and stares at me, "It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry for everything I said...I wasn't...thinking clearly."

"I know you weren't but I should have tried harder."

"How's Annie?"

"She's ok...home asleep. Why are you here so soon?"

"Cato and I-"

"Wait, he's here?"

I have to put a hand on his chest to keep him from going after Cato, "He is, protecting me. I'll explain more about that later but I'm here because it is time to incite the rebellion of District Four."

He folds his hands behind his back and nods, "The people have been restless ever since you and Wiley's deaths...I can tell you they're ready."

"I know, it will begin soon. I promise. I'll deliver a speech when the best time comes and things will be on their way."

He looks at me and straightens up, "Look at you, Hydra Inna has grown up and is now going to be the leader of a rebellion."

"It is time for the rule of Snow to end...and I want my vengeance for Arlen."

"I couldn't agree more."

"I'm going to see my parents but I'll be back over here as soon as I am finished and we will discuss plans."

He looks at me with sad eyes and nods, "Very well...I'm glad you're back."

I give him one final hug and whisper gently, "I am happy to be back, I've missed you greatly."

He releases me and I climb back down to Cato, "What now?"

"We visit my mother and father."

* * *

**Cato's POV**

Cato followed Hydra through the fishing villages and stared wide-eyed at ocean that lay infinitely before them.

Glimmering boats floated in the dark water with all kind of fishing equipment and weapons mounted on the sides of the cabins.

Some of the houses rose high above the water on wooden stilts, connected to the land by rope bridges and palm bark.

Hydra led him to one of the larger ones, helping him make his way across the rickety bridge.

"How do you do this?"

"You get used to it after a while, just don't look down if you're afraid of heights."

"Me? Never."

They reached the door that had a large, white sign with _Inna _written in black script across the front.

She reached up and knocked, the door opening to reveal a tall girl with long, raven-black hair and almond shaped sandalwood eyes.

She stared in disbelief and shock, a hand flying over her mouth, "Hydra?"

"Naida!"

He watched as the two embraced, crying together, "We thought you were dead!"

"I was...but I'm here, I'm back from District 13."

"District 13? But it's destroyed, right?"

"I'll explain more later, where are my parents?"

Cato had a bad feeling as the older girl stood back, "I-Hydra..."

"What is it?"

"Your father suffered from a heart attack the day you were killed...he didn't make it..."

Hydra's face drained of color and she fell against Cato, he held her up and she pressed her face into his chest, a loud wail filled the night air.

He brushed the hair from her red eyes as she sobbed, "I'm sorry Hydra..."

Naida looked at him with eyes full of melancholy and he looked at her with understanding, he knew the pain of losing a parent.

"Naida? Who is it?" A feeble voice called from the darkness.

Hydra pulled away from Cato and watched as her mother emerged from the depths of the house.

She stopped when she saw her daughter, standing there in the moonlight, scarred forever by the brutal and bloody Hunger Games with the boy that she loved from District Two.

"Hydra?"

She slowly made her way over to Hydra, staring up at her with her big, sky blue eyes, "Can you really be my baby? Or are you a ghost that is here to haunt me?"

Cato gently released Hydra as she flew into her mother's waiting arms, "I'm home mama, I'm home."

* * *

**Katniss' POV**

** One month later:**

Katniss stared at the television in Madge's room, eyes wide as the words "UPDATE ON DISTRICT 8" began to flash across the screen.

What was happening in District Eight?

"Oh god, not an uprising," she whispered.

A gray-haired woman with an authoritative voice appeared warning that conditions were worsening and that a Level 3 alert had been issued.

Additional forces from the Capitol were being sent in and the people had ceased to make anything.

The main square in District Eight was full of people and banners with Katniss' face that were still waving from the rooftops from the Victory tour a while ago.

The mob in the streets below screamed and shouted, their faces were covered with rags and masks creating the appearance of fearsome beasts.

The threw bricks at the peacekeepers and several buildings burned in the distance.

The peacekeepers shot at people randomly and killed several of the crowd members.

But one thing rose above the clamor, a name that Katniss hadn't heard since the Victory tour and a name that there were whispers about in every corner of every district now, "INNA! INNA! INNA!"

The camera briefly flickered to an image that shocked Katniss.

Hydra Inna stood on the steps of the justice building with Cato, shielded by a group of grey clad soldiers, screaming out a speech that enraged the crowd even more and caused them to push forward against the peacekeepers.

She was dressed in an outfit of black, graced with swirls made to resemble waves of violet, turquoise and ocean blue; no doubt the work of her stylist Moana.

She looked fearsome in the skintight costume, her silver sais glinted dangerously in the red sunlight and her scarred face was beautiful even now.

Cato stood behind her, his massive arms crossed over his chest and his ice-blue eyes glared out at the scene before him.

He was dressed in an onyx black costume that revealed the size of his monstrous figure and scars graced his face as well.

Whoever helped them made damn sure that the traces of the Arena's brutality were left on their skin.

They were ghosts come back from the dead.

Hydra Inna was somewhere out there and Katniss needed to find her.

**THE END.**

* * *

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